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Our monumental Neapolitan Nativity scene has to be seen to be believed.
Bishop Auckland will be the only place in the UK where people can see an elaborate 18th-century nativity scene from Naples this festive season, comprising over 400 intricately crafted figures depicting the birth of Jesus Christ.
The Auckland Project will present The Auckland Palace Nativity in its Faith Museum for a limited time this Christmas as part of its annual Christmas at Auckland Palace event.
First displayed in 2022, the Italian-made nativity has become a festive tradition in the North East. This year’s family-friendly exhibition is bigger than ever, with activities for children of all ages, including dressing up as a nativity figure, embarking on an animal scavenger hunt and exploring the sights, smells and sounds of the nativity.
The display features over 400 crafted figures and objects, including Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus and all the other traditional characters from the Biblical story of the birth of Jesus Christ but set in 18th-century Naples amid the ruins of the Classical world. Whimsical details include bustling Neapolitan townsfolk, Ottoman musicians, and a mischievous cat stealing shellfish.
Known as a presepe in Italian, the nativity set was created between 1760 and 1820 by some of the top craftspeople in Naples and sets like these were originally commissioned for display in prestigious Neapolitan residences, including the Royal Palace.
It includes 421 individual pieces, among them 112 human figures, 52 animals, and 257 other delicate objects and furnishings. Installation takes a team of technicians weeks to assemble, as each figure, delicately crafted from terracotta, wood, iron wire, and rich fabrics, is placed by hand.
The figures wear traditional dress local to Naples and are ornamented with jewellery, swords, and instruments made in miniature by manufacturers who specialised in these wares. The scene is displayed in a custom wooden case nearly three metres wide with a built-in lighting system that can simulate sunset and sunrise.
The Neapolitan Nativity is included as part of the Christmas at the Palace experience, with free entry for Bishop’s Key members.
