TOUR ITINERARIES
Baroque Ways
Lenght: 82 km

BARI

Bari is the chief city of the region and it is on the Adriatic sea, at the centre of the coast of Puglia. It is the biggest city of the region and the second most important one of the Mezzogiorno area. This city appears now as a modern commercial metropolis.

It is an interesting city to visit; there are many charming things to see: architecture, archaeology, religious sites, roman cathedrals, evidences of the times of Federico II of Svevia, theatres, universities, important fairs, cultural traditions and above all a wide and rich countryside, with almond trees, olive trees, vines and cereals. All of this is then surrounded by the sea. A suggestive walk along the beautiful Walls of the Bari old town starts from the old dock, over Cristoforo Colombo promenade. Passing by Piazza del Ferrarese and Piazza Mercantile, you get to S.Nicola Basilica, in the heart of the old town centre, near which there also are S.Gregorio church, S.Marco church, S.Sabino Cathedral and the Svevian Castle in Piazza Federico II, outside the wall, that is the seat of the provincial gallery of plaster casts. The Crusades Street is also very nice and it evokes past expeditions to the Holy Land.
The “muratian” area instead was built in a nineteenth century style, developing itself as a chessboard, with straight streets that intersect. It is on the southern side of the the old town centre, from which it is divided by Corso Vittorio Emanuele. An interesting visit of the modern part of Bari starts in Corso Vittorio Emanuele II and goes along the smart Via Sparano, heart of the city with refined and valuable shops.
There is Mincuzzi Palace, built in 1920, with its stately shape, and
the lovely S.Ferdinando church. From via Sparano you can get to Umberto I Square, a green area over which the stately Ateneo Palace towers. In a part of this palace there is the Archaeologic Museum, constituted in 1875, in which there is a collection of documents and findings of historic and cultural importance to know and study the apulo-grecian culture of Daunia (Foggia), Peucezia (Bari) and Messapia (Salento).You can then go along via Cavour, on the left side, where there are noble palaces, such as the Chamber of Commerce (XIX cent., but it has been abandoned) and the peculiar Petruzzelli Theatre, that burned in 1991 and is now being rebuilt.

MONOPOLI

Driving for 35 minutes along the numb. 16 highway for 46 km you get to Monopoli, a town on the Adriantic sea, at the foot of the Murgia area.This is an important fishing site with 47.000 inhabitants and it has a trapezoidal plan.

Monopoli borders with the territories of Castellana Grotte, Fasano, Polignano a Mare and Conversano and it has a great archaeological importance.The main sites are: Grotta delle Mura, one of the most important Paleolithic sites of the central area of Puglia; Capitolo: there are some Neolithic findings and also some Roman and Messapic material; the Peucezi city: with Diria findings; Masseria Donnaloia: where they found some dark red pottery handcraft from the Metal Age; the Lame. The old town centre clinges over the sea and it is fastened by Aragonese walls. It has medieval origins, as you can see looking at the urban and social structure and at the ancient houses facing the dock. There are massive walls all around the town and three gates: Porta Nuova (near Largo Plebiscito), Porta Vecchia or Foca ( Built under the reign of Bisanzio Emperor) and Porta Castri (in Largo Vescovado). Other monuments to visit are the beautiful Palazzo Palmieri, from the XVIII cent., and the Castle, that is a stately building of the time of Federico II of Svevia and is settled on a headland called Punta Penna. Other important and precious monuments of the historic and artistic town estate are the churches, expecially the country and the rupestrian ones. The most important one, however, is the beautiful Cathedral, one of the most expressive examples of Baroque art in the territory of Bari. Inside it, there is a rich museum with precious Romanic, Dalmatian and Venetian sculptures.

CONVERSANO

This town origins go back to the Paleolithic Age and in ancient times it was called Norba. It has a rich and precious archaeologic estate and it is one of the biggest and most ancient Peucetian centres.

Its ancient megalithic walls still represent one of the most peculiar elements of the old town, that developed around the castle, built by the Normans in the XI century and then embellished with other archietectonic elements by Svevians and Angevins. Besides the castle, you can also visit many churches and convents with their art works and the Municipal Picture-Gallery.

PUTIGNANO

Passing by Bari, Monopoli and Conversano, our itinerary takes us to Putignano, a town famous all over the world for its Carnival. It is in the heart of the Murgia area, among picturesque trulli and suggestive caves. It is a flourishing agricultural and industrial site and it is also famous for the tailoring of wedding dresses.

Walking in the old town centre we can see the stately Barsento Door, from the first half of the XVI century. There is a peculiar coat of arms of the cross of Malta in the arch. Going on with our visit, we get to the Sedile, a building with the main church bell tower clock on its wall, dated back to 1575, and to the Prince Palace, a smart XIV century construction, called Balì Palace. Inside this building there is a big collection of arms that belonged to the Prince Romanazzi-Carducci , many rooms with peculiar silver, pottery and furniture, and two beautiful paintings attributed to Salvador Rosa and Stefano da Putignano. There also is a little chapel with an altar on which there is the Malta Knights coat of arms. The main church then, consecrated to S.Pietro Apostle, is very impressive. It was built in the XII century and then restored in the XVII one.Outside, there is a precious façade with a wonderful rose window, a romanic- gothic portal and a bell tower built in 1615. Inside, there are important art works from the XVII century, made by Miglionico and Stefano da Putignano. Putignano historic and architectonic estate is also made precious by many masserie. The most important ones are: Masseria S. Nicola, Masseria Riccardi, Masseria Monterosso, Masseria di Cristo, Masseria Montelli.
The territory around Putiganno is also rich in caves where, in the past years, they found plenty of archaeologic findings. 500 metres far away from the urban area, there is the Trullo Cave; another important cave is Madonna delle Grazie, on the way to Gioia del Colle.

Texts: Italiainrete - Pictures: Database and web

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