24) Necropolis of San Vito

24. Necropolis of San Vito

Located in the upper part of Pozzuoli, along the ancient Via Campana, the Necropolis of San Vito offers a different perspective than that of Via Celle. Here, funerary monuments alternate with structures intended for other functions, demonstrating how the ancient city extended seamlessly inland. The tombs discovered here are often hypogeal or columbarium-type, designed to house a large number of cinerary urns.

The distinctive feature of the Necropolis of San Vito is the variety of tomb typologies, reflecting the multi-ethnicity of Pozzuoli. Epitaphs in Greek and Latin have been found here, referring to traders, freed slaves, and imperial officials. Many structures still retain the original colors of their wall paintings, protected by the volcanic soil that covered them for centuries. It is a site of great documentary value, allowing archaeologists to reconstruct the family tree of entire families who made the fortune of the Pozzuoli port between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD.