Agricultural Pavillon – Unina

Agricultural Pavillon – Unina

The Department of Agriculture of Naples University "Federico II" is located in the prestigious Palace of Portici, a building wanted by Charles III of Bourbon King of Sicily (Charles VII of Naples, according to the papal investment). In occasion of an invitation by the Prince Elboeuf Emmanuele Maurizio of Lorena, he spent a day in his palace in Portici, fell in love with the place, and decided to build his summer residence. The direction of the work was entrusted to the Roman architect Canevari, while painters such as Giuseppe Bonito decorated the rooms. The sculptures and statues of the park, made in Carrara marble, are attributed to the sculptor Canart. The Real Villa's work ended in 1742 and many of the aristocratic families of the time built villas around them, creating a unique concentration of palaces and gardens known today as Ville Vesuviane, a major cultural heritage. Over the years, the Villa underwent various modifications: originally conceived on a square plant, it was subsequently expanded in the French period with a completely new wing towards the sea and one oriented towards Vesuvius. The building is characterized by a superb facade with large terraces and balustrades. A large vestibule leads to the noble floor with a scenic staircase along which you can admire statues from ancient Herculaneum, where other architectural elements from the factory come from. Of particular artistic importance, the porcelain parlor of Regina Maria Amalia, originally in the palace, now preserved at the Museum of Capodimonte of Naples. An important element of the architectural complex is the large park, characterized by long avenues, and structured like an English garden, originally a hunting reserve of the Bourbon King and stretching from the sea to the slopes of Mount Vesuvius. The Provincial Administration of Naples bought the Reggia in 1871 with the specific and declared intention to give it to the High School of Agriculture, the first in southern and insular Italy and the third in Italy, preceded by those of Pisa and Milan after (1870). The Royal Decree of 14-1-1872, no. 658, legally recognized the three-year school, the inauguration took place on 9-1-1873 and the members of that year were exactly 19. From the academic year, 1893-94, the duration of the courses lasted four years and with the school year 1924-25, because of Decree n. 2492 of 3-8-1923, the school assumed the name of the Istituto Superiore Agrario and completely depended on the Ministry of Agriculture. With the academic year 1935-36, following the passage to the M.P.I., the Institute assumed the current name of the Faculty of Agriculture of the University of Naples. From the academic year 2013-2014, in accordance with the Gelmini Law, the Department of Agriculture was established.