Chapel of San Rocco, Caserta

Just outside the village of Casertavecchia, where the roads to Caserta and Castel Morrone meet, stands the Chapel of San Rocco. The people of Caserta built it in the 17th century as protection against the plague: a Latin inscription of 1635 beside the entrance still invites passers-by to stop and invoke the names of Roch, Sebastian and Mary.We love its simple façade, with the wrought-iron doorway topped by a niche holding an image of the Madonna, and the bell gable about eight metres high. Inside, the single nave has a marble altar crowned by a wooden crucifix, and traces of 17th- and 18th-century frescoes remain on the walls, including a figure of Saint Roch. We recommend a stop here before heading up to the medieval village.