ArchiveStories Podcast Brings Banco di Napoli's Historical Archive to Life

The Fondazione Banco di Napoli, in collaboration with Gruppo Panini Cultura and ANSA, has launched ArchiveStories, a 12-episode podcast series that narrates five centuries of Southern Italy's economic, social, and artistic history through the bank's vast archival collection. Written by Nunzia Sarnelli and narrated by Debora Sacco and Michele Buonocore, the series aims to engage younger audiences with accessible digital storytelling. Each episode explores a different theme, including 19th-century painter Giacinto Gigante, female emancipation in the early 1900s, the Teatro dell'Arte di San Bartolomeo, emigration, the Neapolitan revolution, Eleonora Pimental Fonseca, Palazzo Reale, Pulcinella, Silvio Fiorello and commedia dell'arte, Naples' legendary origins, and Mastro Giorgio Cattaneo, a 17th-century nurse who beat patients. The podcast is also made accessible to deaf audiences through 12 video podcasts translated into Italian Sign Language (LIS), produced with the Ente Nazionale Sordi ETS-APS Sezione Provinciale di Napoli. Episodes have been available since January 20 on major platforms and the Banco di Napoli website. Lucia Panini, co-founder of Gruppo Panini Cultura, described the project as a concrete example of digital transformation and cultural innovation.