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Poggiardo rose from the spoil of Vaste (which is now just a small village linked to it) in medieval times and it is the largest local town near the fascinating seaside resorts Castro and S.Cesarea Terme, distant only 5 km. |
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| Poggiardo has a museum, unique in Italy. There are Byzantine wall paintings from the Crypt of S.Maria of the Angels (XII century), also there is one of the most beautiful villas (800c.) of the province of Lecce. At the discovery the crypt (1929) seemed really damaged, so the frescoes were courageously removed from the walls, restored and, in 1975, placed in an underground museum, built on the purpose in Episcopo square. |
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| In the museum the original perimeter of the crypt has been traced on the floor and frescoes placed on panels original position. This contributed to preserve the iconographic material. In the original structure, that has been restored, are house the copies of the frescoes. |
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| The most important sacred building is the church of the Transfiguration of Christ, in baroque style. It has a very ancient architectural origin, dating back to century. By the end of the XVII century it was almost totally rebuilt. |
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The Palace of the dukes Guarini is situated in the centre square, the most ancient part, the tower, over the sea, was built in 1300, the noble Guarini family became the owner in 1466 enlarging its structure. The last dweller of the palace was the Duke Francesco Antonio, who lived there until his death in 1879. Later, it was gradually abandoned.
The Madonna della Grotta chapel is undoubtedly the most ancient sacred building still in existence. It is located in the cemetery area and its tower structure makes it a beautiful example of fortified place for veneration.
The beauty of Poggiardo continues in the street of the historical centre, into the whiteness of the houses around courts and the patrician houses, among these, Episcopo palace. |
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| The big “serra” of Poggiardo, it is a beautiful natural scene, here the visitor will admire the Read Seas Pinewood where the pine and the olive join in Mediterranean wedding. The name of the pinewood it originates from the colour of the round of the close old bauxite quarries. Here many types of endemic wild orchids can be appreciated. Here find the complex of the Poggiardo’s carsick caves unfortunately, these underground sites are inaccessible to the majority of visitors, being reserved only to equipped speleologists. |
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Near the “serra” there is the archaeological area of Vaste village with Messapian walls (4th century B.C.), the ruins of the Paleo-Christian Church (5th century AD), around it an extensive Paleo- Christian Necropolis carved out of the rock distributed over the outcrops of rock which surround it, with hundreds of tombs.
Santi Stefani Crypt (10th century) is one of the Byzantine crypt more important all the Salento for the cycle of frescoes which adorn the interior, attributable to different phases of the church’s history (10th -14th century).
For this important environmental, anthropological, archaeological and historical territorial rich, the serra of Poggiardo has grown the archaeological - environmental park.
Poggiardo has a market every Wednesday and in the historical centre of the town, in summer every Saturday evening there is an antique market with local made articles. |
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The sights of a village
- Church of the Transfiguration of Christ (1728)
- Palace of the dukes Guarini (XVIII century)
- Crypt and Museum of S.Maria of the Angels (XII century)
- Madonna della Grotta Chapel (XVI century)
- Church St. Francis
- Church of the Immaculate Virgin (XVII century)
- Bishop’s Palace
- The Sedile Palace
- Episcopo Palace
- Park Episcopo (XIV century)
- Sticchi Palace
- The Archaeological - Environmental Park |
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