A Journey through Italy: one photo every day #55 - MINERVINO MURGE [ENG/ITA]

Hello everyone,
I began a Photo Journey through Italy. I will post one photo every day with a little note of explanation. I hope you like it!

Minervino Murge is a town in the province of BAT (Barletta-Andria-Trani), in the Southern Italian region of Puglia. The sight of Minervino is beautiful from there, an unusual and unforgettable view.

It is right on a prominence which overlooks the Ofanto River basin; this hillock is known as Balcone delle Puglie (Apulien balcony), precisely because of its location, from which you can enjoy a beautiful view of the Basilicata mountains, Tavoliere delle Puglie, Gargano promontory and of the Gulf of Manfredonia.

Maybe the name of this town derives from the presence of an ancient temple dedicated to Minerva. The history of the town has ancient origins, some findings document that the territory was already inhabited in 2000 BC, but a romantic legend has it that the city was founded by a legionnaire who survived the battle of Cannae, and a young shepherdess, who celebrated their wedding in the current Grotta di San Michele (St. Michael’s Cave).

The ancient and complex walls made of square and circular towers have been destroyed (only one has survived, on Vico V Scesciola). What remains is the nucleus of a city that is unexpectedly beautiful and noble.
To visit the small old town center, one has to go up and down stairs, ladders, alleys and streets, but it is this enjoyable activity that allows you to breathe deeply and throw away the smog of the city environments.

The buildings and the churches are architectural elements of value, solid and representative, almost as if it were a castle-city and its rich facades were doors to secret and ornate rooms. Among all the religious and civil buildings, the Cathedral dedicated to the Virgin: built in the middle ages (the exact date is unknown), it was almost completely rebuilt between 500 and 600. At the time was erected a beautiful stone bell tower: collapsed in recent times, it was rebuilt in 1924.

Very interesting is the Immacolata Concezione Church, built at the end of ' 700: it has two bell towers and a Baroque façade with pediment. From the civil point of view are the Castle (built in ' 300, it has been heavily restructured and transformed into the seat of the Town Hall) and the Votive Lighthouse of the Villa Comunale, to commemorate the Apulian martyrs

Thing to see: The historical center, the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, the Norman Swabian Castle, the Church and Grotto of San Michele, the Church and Sanctuary of Madonna del Sabato, the Immacolata Concezione Church, the Votive Lighthouse, the Archaeological Museum, the Church of San Francesco.