Certosa di San Martino: Detail, looking up at the facade at the top of the Vómero Hill

The Carthusian certosa (charterhouse) on the Vómero Hill, site of the Museo di S Martino, was founded in 1325. It was built in close relation to the surrounding landscape, with magnificent gardens (restored after World War II) overlooking the city. From the late 16th century to the late 18th the certosa underwent transformations that almost obliterated its medieval form and made it one of the most remarkable European Baroque monuments. Giovanni Giacomo di Conforto and Giovanni Antonio Dosio restructured the certosa in the late 16th century. Dosio designed the great arched and columned Chiostro Grande (1591-1609). Cosimo Fanzago, who directed the works 1631-1656 added many important sculptural details. It is now a museum.