Chiesa di Santa Maria del Carmine

Lonely Planet review

Santa Maria del Carmine plays a starring role in local folklore. When Conrad of Swabia was charged with treason in 1268, his mother desperately tried to raise money to pay a ransom for her son's life. But she was too late and Conrad was beheaded. Grief-stricken, she gave the money to the church, on the condition that the Carmelite brothers prayed for him every day. They agreed and the cashed-up brothers built the church you see today.

There's a monument to Conrad in the transept. However, it's the 13th-century Byzantine icon behind the main altar, the Madonna della Bruna, that is the star attraction here. Attributed with miraculous powers, the Madonna is celebrated every year on 16 July when crowds flock here to see the 17th-century campanile lit up by fireworks. The city's tallest bell tower, its onion-dome design is the work of Giacomo di Conforto and Giovanni Donzelli.

Further myth (and miracle) surrounds a wooden crucifix that hangs in a tabernacle under the church's main arch. According to legend, a cannonball fired at the church in 1439 during the war between Alfonso of Aragon and Robert of Anjou flew into the church and headed straight for the crucifix. In the nick of time Jesus ducked and the cannonball sailed harmlessly past.