Pozzuoli Cathedral Columns

View of the rear area of the Pozzuoli Cathedral.   Note the original columns of the Roman Temple that remain on both sides of the church.  Originally this was a large Roman Temple that was dedicated to the Emperor Augustus.  Note the pilasters and capitals that line the walls and the two pilasters at the entrance to the altar area.  The Temple was in existence when the Apostle Paul landed at Puteoli, and spent a week here, before being transferred, in custody, to Rome (Acts 28:13-14).

The temple was turned into a Church at the beginning of the sixth century.  The Church is called the "Pozzuoli Cathedral" or the "Basilica of San Procolo martire." Procolo was a Christian who was martyred around A.D. 305.  It is the main church of Pozzuoli.

The Church/Temple has suffered much through the centuries—particularly in 1538 when the nearby volcano, Monte Nuovo, was formed.  But it was restored in the middle 1500s.

After additional destructions and neglect, it reopened for worship on May 11, 2014.