Amalfi Maritime Republic History

The bronze statue of Flavio Gioia stands with one hand outstretched, holding a mariner's compass toward the sea. Amalfi honors him as the man who invented this navigational tool during the fourteenth century. Historians debate whether he…

The Arsenale della Repubblica features massive stone vaults supported by sturdy pointed arches that stretch toward the sea. This medieval shipyard was where the Republic of Amalfi constructed the formidable galleys that dominated…

The Porta della Marina stands as a thick stone archway topped by a small, colorful majolica tiled image of Saint Andrew. It serves as the primary entrance from the harbor into the heart of Amalfi. In the Middle Ages, this gate protected…

The Piazza dei Dogi opens up as a flat, paved space sitting right at the edge of the harbor. It serves as the historic maritime heart of Amalfi. Back in the eleventh century, the powerful Republic of Amalfi conducted its business here,…

The Saint Andrew's Fountain features a marble sculpture of the town's patron saint standing atop a multi-tiered base, surrounded by jets of water that pour into a stone basin. Built in seventeen sixty, it occupies the center of the main…

The Cathedral of Saint Andrew sits at the top of a steep, sixty-two step staircase, its facade glowing with gold-leaf mosaics that depict Christ and the apostles. Inside this ninth-century structure lies the crypt of Saint Andrew, whose…

The Chiostro del Paradiso features a series of slender, intertwined marble columns that support pointed Moorish arches. Built in the thirteenth century as a cemetery for the prominent merchant families of Amalfi, the cloister served as a…

The Municipio di Amalfi occupies a pale, neoclassical building perched directly above the main coastal road, recognizable by its rhythmic row of arched windows and the Italian flag flying from the balcony. Once the site of the ancient…