By the name of Sancio Cattolico we indicate the area of the harbour in Procida, on the north-east edge of the island. The origins of the name seem to belong to the 10th century when, after the first forays by Saracene pirates, the inhabitants from the west shore of Cape Miseno moved by order of the Duke of Naples to the isle of Procida, belived more secure for the presence of the old town of Terra Murata. The refugees, who settled on the coast in front of Cape Miseno, named that place "Santo Cattolico" (Catholic Saint), abbreviated into dialectal "Sentecò".

The harbour of Sancio Cattolico was an important commercial call with shipyards premises. It boasted a famous tradition of sea captains, ratified in the 19th century by the institution of the Royal Nautical School, whose heritage has passed to the Naval Technical Institute, nowadays housed inside a palace from the 18th c. that once had the main portal on the wharf. During the 19th century the harbour have contained more than 150 vessels and still in 1875 they had been opened some new shipyards, in confirmation of the importance reached by the shipping fleet of Procida.

The harbour stretches from the Spiaggia della Lingua (Tongue's Shore, where it was the earliest port of Procida, protected by the Tabaia Tower) up to the area before Punta del Faro (Lighthouse's Cape) and called "Sotto le Grotte" (Under the caves) where have been the shipyards, initially organized inside some rooms excavated into the tufa cliff.

In the middle of the harbour, on a small protrusion from the shore called "Punticella" (Small cape), there is the Church of Santa Maria della Pietà (Our Lady of Mercy), built in the 18th century, enlarging a preexisting chapel with the same name. In the square in front of the church there was once the marketplace.  [ More...]