An extreme and massive expression of the iconization of suffering: The Cult of the "abandoned souls" in Naples

The study offers an example of iconization of suffering towards the analyze of the Cult of the abandoned souls practiced in the so-called Fontanelle cemetery in Naples. The particularity of the Fontanelle cemetery is the fact that after the political unification of Italy, it becomes a place of a special cult of the skulls of the dead. The skulls were "adopted" by the Neapolitan population and kept in particular care. The Neapolitan cult of the skulls of the dead, called Culto delle anime pezzentelle, lasted the town until 1969. In that year the cult was abruptly interrupted by civil and ecclesiastical authorities. Relicts of the cult are still present among some of the city's elders. The symbolism of the cult was later picked up by renowned artists, such as Rebecca Horn, who was the author, of many installations in Naples and other towns referring to the skulls of the Fontanelle cemetery. Although it is a general opinion that the cult represents an iconization of suffering, very little has been done to understand the deep historical and cultural reasons for this suffering.