BASILICA DI SAN PIETRO AD ARAM

It is the oldest church in Naples: its foundation dates back to about 44 AD although it dates from 17th century in its present state. Nothing remains, however, of its cloister, which was demolished in the 19th century to allow the opening of Corso Umberto I. Legend has it that the Apostle Peter celebrated his first mass here on the peninsula and baptized the first Neapolitans converted to Christianity. The episode is recalled in the hall by a fresco of 1450 that surmounts the altar on which St. Peter would have celebrated the mass. The designation "Aram" derives from "Ara Petri", the stone altar of Peter. Among the first converts were santa Candida (Saint Candide) and sant'Aspreno, the first bishop of Naples. For the record, sant'Aspreno was the saint venerated when suffering from migraines. It is said that when the pharmaceutical company Bayer patented his headache medicine in 1900, it named it Aspirin after the Neapolitan saint!
From the left transept, access to the catacombs, as well as to the crypt, which turns out to be part of the old early Christian church, consisting of three naves separated by marble columns. Excavations of the catacombs in the twentieth century uncovered seven skeletons considered to be those of the first seven saints of Naples, among whom was Santa Candida. His skull is now preserved in the sacristy.