Description

Before the 18th century Via Morelli was built, there was a wonderful view from Palazzo Sessa of Capri and Posillipo Hill. Palazzo Sessa was built on ground belonging to Santa Maria a Cappella Vecchia. To reach the palace you have to cross the ancient churchyard through a portal dating back to 1506. The church has been converted into a gym and none of the former façade is visible. The Lateran Canons who used to live there, sold the vast estate to Marquis Giuseppe Sessa in 1741. The Marquis wanted to improve on this bargain even more, and paid the owners an annual fee in money or victuals. The first and second floor held the English Embassy for more than forty years, and one of its officers, William Hamilton, received many important guests while there, including Wolfgang Goethe in 1787. Today the building holds the central branch of the Jewish Community and a Synagogue.