The Villa Comunale is the symbol of the renewed touristic identity of the city of Sorrento during the second half of the 19th century. It was designed by the engineer Enrico Smith and created in the garden of the former convent of S. Francesco. The use of this garden was firstly entrusted to Hotel Tramontano, but in 1876 the local authorities revoked the concession in order to commence work on transforming it into a public garden.
In the first years after its inauguration, the park was only open during the day in the winter months, whilst in the summer it was also open in the evenings to create a point of interest for the numerous tourists present in Sorrento.
The symmetry of the tree-lined avenue and the flowerbeds reflects the English canons of the time. Inside the Villa are 3 marble busts. The first one is of Francesco Saverio Gargiulo, a distinguished magistrate, lecturer and head of the Secretariat of the Presidency of the Italian Council of Ministers; the second is of Bartolomeo Capasso, a well-known Italian archivist to whom the municipal library is also dedicated; the third is of Salve d’ Esposito to whom the park is dedicated (as shown at the entrance gate). The latter, a Neapolitan composer and orchestra conductor, is remembered for having composed the piece “Anema e Core”.
