Sites of interest in Barletta

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Category: Sites of interest in Barletta

Sites of interest in Barletta

Swabian Castle of Barletta

The Castle of Barletta is the architectural result of various stratifications, which are the cause of the succession of different ruling dynasties from the 11th century to the 18th century (Normans, Swabians, Angevins, Aragonese, Spanish). However, the great interest and love shown by Frederick II of Swabia for Barletta and Apulia in general led to the castle being called Swabian par excellence.

Amongst the beauty and architectural majesty of the Castle there are: the Civic Museum, the only existing bust of Frederick II (dating back to the 13th century), the Sarcophagus of the Apostles, a high stone relief (dating back to the period between the 3rd and 4th centuries) and the Municipal Library in which around 90,000 volumes are preserved and accessible to the public.

Sites of interest in Barletta

De Nittis Art Gallery

The ‘Giuseppe De Nittis’ Art Gallery is a museum in Barletta, dedicated to the painter Giuseppe De Nittis, recognised as one of the greatest exponents of Italian and International Impressionism.
The International Exhibition in Paris in 1878 reserved great honours for De Nittis: he was awarded the Legion of Honour, while one of his works, The Carousel Courtyard and the Tuileries in Ruins, was purchased by the government for the Luxembourg Museum. After his death, which came suddenly in 1884, his wife Léontine donated many of his paintings to the painter’s hometown, which are now on permanent display in the De Nittis Art Gallery located in the Palazzo della Marra.

 The Pinacoteca also periodically hosts other temporary exhibitions.

Senza categoria,  Sites of interest in Barletta

Palazzo Della Marra

Palazzo Della Marra has been the residence of important aristocratic families such as the Orsini, Della Marra and Fraggianni.
The entrance portal is valuable, enriched by allegorical representations of both Old Age and Youth and an elegant balcony supported by five corbels decorated with griffins, dogs and monsters. The loggia overlooking the sea is richly decorated with allegorical themes on the seasons of life. The first floor of the palace is used for temporary exhibitions and the second for the permanent De Nittis Art Gallery.

Sites of interest in Barletta

Heraclius

The Colossus of Barletta, also known as Heraclius, called Aré in the town’s dialect, is a gigantic bronze statue, 4.50 metres high. Its nickname derives from the fact that it was initially believed to depict the emperor Heraclius I, but this hypothesis has recently been discarded as its hairstyle does not correspond to that typical of the 5th century. It is much more likely to be a representation of the emperor Theodosius II at the age of 38, erected by order of Valentinian III in Ravenna in 439 A.D., and it ended up in Apulia by ways that are obscure to say the least.

The Colossus of Barletta therefore hides behind its impressiveness a fascinating aura of mystery between history and legend, all waiting to be discovered.

Senza categoria,  Sites of interest in Barletta

San Giacomo Church

The rectory of San Giacomo is one of the oldest churches in Barletta, indeed its foundation is thought to date back to the late 11th century.

At the time of its construction, the church was outside the city walls and it was located in a strategic position on the road leading to Canne. The current religious building is the result of numerous building superimpositions that occurred over the centuries and of the urbanistic events that affected the ancient Borgo San Giacomo in contemporary times.

The front facing the corso sees the presence of a clock in the middle of the obelisk. The clock is placed on an advanced construction with respect to the line of the external front of the church.

Sites of interest in Barletta

Winery of the Disfida

The Winery of the Disfida, also known as the home of Poison, is the famous ancient tavern, known as “Winery of the Sfida”. According to the knightly costumes, it was here that a succulent lunch was anciently set up, in honour of the French who had been defeated during a battle with the Spanish.

Between history and legend, it is said that in early 1503, during a lunch, the Frenchman La Motte, with impudence and arrogance would praise his soldiers and despise the Italians, by defining them cowards, inept and disloyal. During the banquet, intoxicated by the excellent wine of Barletta, the French knights, among whom the figure of the proud La Motte stands out, sit with the Spanish, including the capitain Don Diego from Mendoza, who provokes the French by comparing their values to that of his Italian allies.

La Motte and his men do not accept what they say is a great insult: to be compared to the “coward” Italians. At this point the “Sfida” starts, it will only be a matter of organising a combat between the best warriors of both sides.

The Winery of the Disfida in Barletta is located inside the palace that, accoring to the sources, was the headquarters of the Grand Capitain of the Spanish troops in Italy, Don Consalvo from Cordova. The Winery is still nowadays a fascinating place full of history, absolutely worth visiting in order to live again the moment of the great insult.

Sites of interest in Barletta

Duomo

The basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore is the cathedral of Barletta, formerly the cathedral of the archdiocese of Barletta and today the co-cathedral of the archdiocese of Trani-Barletta-Bisceglie. Located in the city’s historical centre, at the end of Via Duomo, it is the oldest hub of the city’s religious life, as well as its urbanistic pivot: the design of the urban fabric shows the centripetal force of its mother church.

It was built on an earlier Paleochristian church in the 12th century and later enlarged in the 14th century.

The building is made up of two clearly distinct parts: the front one is typically Romanesque and predates the second, rear one which has distinct Gothic features instead. The church is the result of a series of architectural stratifications over the centuries, dating back to pre-Christian times. The start of construction of the current building dates back to 1126 and continued until the 14th century.

First a distinguished collegiate church of Barletta, over the centuries claiming exemptions and autonomy from other jurisdictions, it was elevated to cathedral of the archdiocese of Barletta-Nazareth by Pope Pius IX with the papal bull Imperscrutabili Dei of 21 April 1860. It has been a minor basilica since 1961. Since 1986 it has been co-cathedral of the archdiocese of Trani-Barletta-Bisceglie.

Worship is officiated by the canons of the chapter of Santa Maria Maggiore.