Piazzetta del Leone

Naples


This semi-circular piazzetta (small square) is named for its somewhat battered-looking protagonist, a marble lion whose origins remain unknown (in spite of the misleading signature on its side). The sculpture once stood by a long-gone dattero closer to the seafront, a tree so famous that it gave its name to nearby Vico Dattero. Urban renewal works saw the lion moved to its current location in the 1860s, from where it continues to eye up passersby.

Transportation

  • metro: Mergellina

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Naples attractions

1. Parco Vergiliano

0.17 MILES

Head up the steep steps at this off-the-radar park and you'll find yourself peering into the world's longest Roman tunnel. Designed by the architect…

2. Porto di Mergellina

0.17 MILES

Once home to the area's fishing fleet, Mergellina's marina is now a crowd-pulling combo of anchored yachts and kitsch Neapolitan chalets, neon-lit seaside…

3. Molo Luise

0.26 MILES

Nicknamed the 'Moletto', this hulking pier protects the Porto di Mergellina from the open sea. It's a popular place for locals (both human and feline),…

4. La Torretta di Mergellina

0.38 MILES

Mergellina's broad boulevards seem a world away from La Torretta di Mergellina, a warren of earthy streets where the neighbourhood's fishermen once lived…

5. Palazzo Donn'Anna

0.63 MILES

Incomplete, semiderelict yet hauntingly beautiful, this seaside Posillipo villa takes its name from Anna Carafa, for whom it was built as a wedding…

6. Thomas Dane Gallery

0.76 MILES

London's Thomas Dane Gallery has injected added buzz to the Naples' art scene with the opening of its first Italian branch. The gallery sits inside 19th…

7. Museo Pignatelli

0.87 MILES

When Ferdinand Acton, a minister at the court of King Ferdinand IV (1759–1825), asked Pietro Valente to design Villa Pignatelli in 1826, Valente whipped…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "italy/naples/santa-lucia-chiaia-1342345/attractions/piazzetta-del-leone/a/poi-sig/1598810/1342345",
      "destination": "Naples",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "Italy",
      "city": "Naples",
      "position": "superzone"
    }