The church was founded by Bartolomeo Di Capua in 1327 and became a place of worship for the Corporation of Pipernieri, Fabricators, and Sawyers who entrusted the protection of their sight, at risk from their trade, to Santa Lucia. Saved and recovered thanks to the work of the Respiriamo Arte Association, it is available again today. In the church's underground cemetery, among many skulls, is kept the famous "Skull with Ears," an expression of the cult of the Souls in Purgatory, called "Pezzentelle." A particular skull to which Neapolitans directed their prayers, hoping that by listening to them, it would carry them directly to the afterlife: a true messenger between the world of the living and the dead.