Explore a Masterpiece of Engineering and History - Accessible to All

This entrance is specifically designed for people with reduced mobility, strollers, and families with children, ensuring an inclusive and comfortable experience for everyone.

The Bourbon Tunnel is not just a tunnel, but a true testament to Bourbon underground civil engineering. The "Standard" tour offers you the unique opportunity to explore this incredible work, admiring it as a true work of art. You'll immerse yourself in the ingenious technical solutions adopted by the designer Errico Alvino and discover the geological challenges encountered during its construction. An experience that will make you appreciate the mastery of a bygone era.

A Journey Through the Centuries: From Cisterns to Shelters

During your visit, you will pass through environments that narrate centuries of Neapolitan history. You'll begin by exploring the Renaissance sections of the Bolla aqueduct, marveling at the three bridges and powerful walls erected by the Bourbons to cross the ancient cisterns, preserving their original functionality.

You will then continue into the areas adapted as a war shelter during World War II. Here, among the walls that offered refuge, you can observe numerous recovered objects, silent witnesses to a difficult and significant era.

Unique Finds and Hidden Stories Beneath Naples

The tour will hold unexpected surprises. Enormous fragments of statues, found among debris and testimonies of remote eras, will frame your exploration.

But that's not all: the Bourbon Tunnel was also used as a judicial depot by the Municipality of Naples between the end of World War II and the 1970s. This led to the discovery of vintage cars and motorcycles which, buried for decades, now emerge from the darkness to tell their story.

Every corner of the Gallery is a clue, every object a fragment of memory waiting to be discovered.

The Bourbon Gallery: A Journey into the Heart of Naples

Discover the Bourbon Gallery, an extraordinary engineering feat and a silent witness to the history of Naples, hidden beneath the city. This fascinating underground passage will lead you through a journey back in time, revealing millennia-old secrets and stories.

The King's Idea: A Hidden Escape Route

The history of the Bourbon Gallery began in the mid-19th century at the behest of King Ferdinand II of Bourbon. In a period of strong political tensions, the King desired a secret passage connecting the Royal Palace to the sea. This tunnel was intended to serve as a rapid escape route for the royal family and troops in case of revolts or invasions, ensuring security and discretion.

The Engineering Challenge: Building Beneath Naples

The project was entrusted to the architect Errico Alvino, who faced a monumental challenge.

The construction of the gallery involved overcoming natural and artificial obstacles in the subsoil of Naples. Workers and engineers had to cross the ancient Bolla aqueduct network, a complex system of cisterns and conduits, and deal with the stability of the terrain, composed of tuff and volcanic deposits.

To overcome these difficulties, advanced engineering solutions for the time were implemented: imposing bridges and vaults were built to span cavities and pre-existing cisterns, showcasing the construction expertise of the era.

The Gallery's Destinies: From Unfinished Project to Refuge

Despite the immense work, the Bourbon Gallery was never completed for its original purpose. The fall of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies interrupted the works, leaving the project unfinished for decades.

Its fate drastically changed during World War II. The gallery was transformed into a gigantic air-raid shelter, offering protection to thousands of Neapolitans from devastating bombings. Its wide vaults became a symbol of salvation for the population.

After the war, for many years, the gallery was used as a judicial deposit, a place where seized vehicles and artifacts were stored, accumulating objects that today bear witness to a more recent past.

The Structure: An Underground Museum

Today, the Bourbon Gallery reveals itself as an underground museum of inestimable historical and architectural value. It extends for over 530 meters, with majestic sections varying in width and height, testifying to the different phases of construction and use.

During the visit, you can closely admire:

• Ancient masonry bridges: true engineering masterpieces spanning the vast cisterns of the Bolla aqueduct.

• Mighty vaults and arches: structures highlighting the robustness and construction ingenuity of the 19th century.

• Ventilation shafts: conduits connecting the depths of the subsoil with the city above.

• Large and evocative spaces: environments that once served as shelters for the population or as storage, and which today display collections of vintage cars and motorcycles, unique artifacts from Neapolitan history.

The structure of the Bourbon Gallery is a journey through centuries of history and engineering, an experience that reveals the complexity and resilience of Naples' underground.

Are you ready to explore this incredible hidden heritage? Discover the magic of underground Naples!

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