San Francesco cloister

What makes unique this valuable construction, is a particularly suggestive architecture. It, indeed, besides blending a style of the 14th century with others from other eras, includes rests coming from pagan temples and materials of other ancient settlements.
The San Francesco cloister is among the most ancient monuments of Sorrento, that, still now, can be visited.
Placed behind the homonymous church and the communal Villa titled to “Salve d’Esposito”, the splendid structure, that dates back to 14th century, is situated in the historic centre of the city and it’s a few meters away from the house where the famous poet Torquato Tasso was born and from other Sorrento monuments.
What makes unique this valuable construction, is a particularly suggestive architecture. It, indeed, besides blending a style of the 14th century with others from other eras, includes rests coming from pagan temples and materials of other ancient settlements.
That’s the reason why with porches made of crossed tuff arches, there are also circular arches that lean to octagonal columns surmounted by exquisite hand-crafted capitals.
Built on the rests of a monastery of the 7th century, the San Francesco cloister – for a long time – has been extremely important for the religious history in Sorrento, and for the administrative life of the city.
Right in the proximity of the Cloister, indeed, in the last centuries (mostly between the end of the 1400 and the beginning of the 1500), was kept the seal of the communal scripture and there were some reunions of the Council.
Renovated in the first decades of 1900, the structure – since then – has known a new life.
Very silent and only brightened by the colours of a sober flora, the San Francesco cloister is highly suggestive and featured by a particularly mystic and, in a way, magical atmosphere.
Even for this reason the beautiful compound was chosen to host very pleasant classical music concerts, and the celebration of civil weddings in Sorrento.