Palazzo Penne

Take a good look at this narrow, slightly neglected palace: it is one of the few civic buildings from the early 15th century that Naples still has. The inscription above the portal gives the date: 1406. It was built for Antonio Penne, secretary to King Ladislaus of Anjou-Durazzo.

1Feathers and lilies

Look at the ashlars of the facade. Some bear a feather, «penna» in Italian: a pun on the owner's surname and, at the same time, the symbol of his job as secretary. Others show the fleur-de-lis of the Anjou, and the cornice carries crosses and crowns in honour of the king. The portal combines the low Catalan arch with Gothic decoration.

2The devil's night

Legend has it that Antonio Penne fell in love with a young woman who would only agree to marry him if he built her a palace in a single night.

In desperation, he signed a pact with Beelzebub: the palace in exchange for his soul. But he added one condition. The devil could only claim it if he managed to count the grains of wheat scattered across the courtyard. Penne had mixed the wheat with pitch; some grains stuck to the demon's nails, and he got the count wrong. Penne escaped the pact and kept the palace.

The real story is less fantastic: the palace passed through several families, became the seat of a religious order in 1683, and was later bought by the volcanologist Teodoro Monticelli, who gives the square its name.

3What to look for

• The feathers in relief on the lower ashlars.
• The Anjou lilies on the upper rows.
• The dated inscription above the portal.