One of the most famous monuments and buildings in Naples is the majestic Castel dell'Ovo. Anyone from Naples well knows the famous legend of the egg of the siren Partenope, hidden by Virgil in the basement of Castel dell'Ovo ( previously called Castel Marino).
Legend tells us that it was the egg that prevented the castle from collapsing. Believed to be fundamental to its survival, Queen Giovanna I swore after the devastating earthquake of 1370 that she had hurriedly replaced the egg to reassure the people and thus dispel the idea that Naples was in the grip of doom.
Castel dell'Ovo
Castel dell'Ovo (Latin: Castrum Ovi) is the oldest castle in the city of Naples and one of the buildings that stands out most in the famous panorama of the gulf. It is located between the districts of San Ferdinando and Chiaia, facing Via Partenope.
The Legend of the Siren Partenope
The siren Partenope was one of the three sisters who, together with Ligia and Leucosia, tried to enchant Ulysses with their melodious singing and to shipwreck him. To resist, Ulysses had himself tied to the ship's mast.
Overcome with despair at their failure, the three sirens let themselves be cast adrift in the water. Legend has it that Parthenope became stuck on the rocks of Megaride, where she laid an egg before she died and was buried.
One day, the great Latin poet Publius Virgil Maro picked up the mermaid's egg near the islet of Megaride. Virgil, believing the egg to be truly magical and enchanted, placed it in the basement of Castel Marino, in a glass bowl filled with water, protected by an iron cage and hung from a heavy oak beam.
The legend says that if the egg was found or if it broke, the whole castle would sink into the sea and a series of misfortunes would befall the city of Naples.
Fortunately, to this day no one has found the egg, and so the legend still holds that the egg's fate is linked to that of the castle and the whole city of Naples.
