Castle of Massafra

Last updated
Castle of Massafra Castello di Massafra.jpg
Castle of Massafra

The Castle of Massafra, located in the historic center of Massafra, is a medieval castle overlooking the Pizzo Ravine and San Marco. Its structure and architectural motifs are similar to other castles in Apulia, with four towers arranged in a wishbone and pattern and linked by boundary walls. The oldest towers are circular, while the keep is octagonal in the southeast.

The first definite record of the castle dates back to the year 970. [1] In 1081, a diploma of the castle is owned by Richard Senescalco. With the domination of the Angevins, the castle took on the appearance of a fortress, with crenellated ramparts and towers. It underwent further transformations under the Aragonese, and in the 18th century the Imperial family rebuilt the octagonal tower and the front facing towards the ravine, designed by the architect Mauro Manieri Lecce. The castle was in the possession of many owners before eventually being purchased by the city.

The main entrance, via the rampart, is through a large gate from which you enter the atrium, with a central shaft and a ramp leading to the drawbridge, which are still visible the pulleys. A grand staircase leads to the rooms of the main house. Premises are kept for different uses: stables, barns, armory, prison (corresponding to the towers and the octagonal tower), warehouses, and neviere pecerie[ what language is this? ] (where it is kept for the pitch torches). There was also a chapel dedicated to San Lorenzo. According to popular tradition, there are secret passages and a tunnel connecting the castle to the sea.

In recent years, several restorations were made to the structure. In 1965, the tower was repaired in the south-west, which had collapsed and in 1975 was that the railing collapsed. Around 2000, the east tower was consolidated and restructured the square in front of the Castle, whose works were co-directed the architect Francis Coratella. It has also built a modern elevator. The rooms of the castle are used as the headquarters of the library and the Civic Archaeological Museum of civilization and historical oil and wine.

In 2007, the castle has been celebrated as a symbol of the city, in a stamp dedicated to Massafra, issued on April 13, 2007.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Arkona</span> Cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany

Cape Arkona is a 45-metre (150-foot) high cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It forms the tip of the Wittow peninsula, just a few kilometres north of the Jasmund National Park. The protected landscape of Cape Arkona, together with the fishing village of Vitt, belongs to the municipality of Putgarten and is one of the most popular tourist destinations on Rügen, receiving about 800,000 visitors annually.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kumamoto Castle</span> Castle in Kumamoto, Japan

Kumamoto Castle is a hilltop Japanese castle located in Chūō-ku, Kumamoto, in Kumamoto Prefecture. It was a large and well fortified castle. The castle keep is a concrete reconstruction built in 1960, but several ancillary wooden buildings remain of the original castle. Kumamoto Castle is considered one of the three premier castles in Japan, along with Himeji Castle and Matsumoto Castle. Thirteen structures in the castle complex are designated Important Cultural Property.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kolomenskoye</span> Old royal estate in Moscow

Kolomenskoye is a former royal estate situated several kilometers to the southeast of the city center of Moscow, Russia, on the ancient road leading to the town of Kolomna. The 390 hectare scenic area overlooks the steep banks of the Moskva River. It became a part of Moscow in the 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Octagon house</span> House style briefly popular in the 1850s

Octagon houses were a unique house style briefly popular in the 1850s in the United States and Canada. They are characterised by an octagonal (eight-sided) plan, and often feature a flat roof and a veranda all round. Their unusual shape and appearance, quite different from the ornate pitched-roof houses typical of the period, can generally be traced to the influence of one man, amateur architect and lifestyle pundit Orson Squire Fowler. Although there are other octagonal houses worldwide, the term octagon house usually refers specifically to octagonal houses built in North America during this period, and up to the early 1900s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Maria della Salute</span> Church in Venice, Italy

Santa Maria della Salute, commonly known simply as the Salute, is a Roman Catholic church and minor basilica located at Punta della Dogana in the Dorsoduro sestiere of the city of Venice, Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bratislava Castle</span> Main castle of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia

Bratislava Castle is the main castle of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. The massive rectangular building with four corner towers stands on an isolated rocky hill of the Little Carpathians directly above the Danube river in the middle of Bratislava. Because of its size and location, it has been a dominant feature of the city for centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karlštejn</span> Gothic castle founded by Charles IV

Karlštejn Castle is a castle in the Czech Republic. It is a large Gothic castle founded in 1348 by King Charles IV. The castle served as a place for safekeeping the Imperial Regalia as well as the Bohemian Crown Jewels, holy relics, and other royal treasures. Karlštejn belongs to the most famous and most frequently visited castles in the country.

Bianzano is a comune in the province of Bergamo, in Lombardy, Italy. It is 600 meters (2,000 ft) above sea level and lies on a little plateau between Cavallina and Seriana valleys. The village boasts a historic center, having kept its original structure with some remains of minor fortified buildings and the imposing medieval Suardi Castle overlooking the valley. Other two outstanding monuments are the shrine of Our Lady of the Assumption (1234) and the parish church dedicated to Saint Roch (1575).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hylton Castle</span> Castle in Sunderland, UK

Hylton Castle is a stone castle in the North Hylton area of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. Originally built from wood by the Hilton family shortly after the Norman Conquest in 1066, it was later rebuilt in stone in the late 14th to early 15th century. The castle underwent major changes to its interior and exterior in the 18th century and it remained the principal seat of the Hylton family until the death of the last Baron in 1746. It was then Gothicised but neglected until 1812, when it was revitalised by a new owner. Standing empty again until the 1840s, it was briefly used as a school until it was purchased again in 1862. The site passed to a local coal company in the early 20th century and was taken over by the state in 1950.

On 20 November 1992, a fire broke out in Windsor Castle, the largest inhabited castle in the world and one of the official residences of the British Monarch. The castle suffered extensive damage and was fully repaired within the next five years at a cost of £36.5 million, in a project led by the conservation architects Donald Insall Associates. It led to Queen Elizabeth II paying tax on her income, and to Buckingham Palace, the former monarch's other official residence, being opened to the public to help pay for the restoration work. This event was part of what Queen Elizabeth II called her annus horribilis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buda Castle</span> Castle complex in Budapest, Hungary

Buda Castle is the historical castle and palace complex of the Hungarian Kings in Budapest. It was first completed in 1265, although the massive Baroque palace today occupying most of the site was built between 1749 and 1769. The complex in the past was referred to as either the Royal Palace or the Royal Castle. The castle now houses the Hungarian National Gallery and the Budapest Historical Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pfitsch</span> Comune in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, Italy

Pfitsch is a comune (municipality) South Tyrol in northern Italy, located about 45 kilometres (28 mi) north of the city of Bolzano, on the border with Austria. It is named for the valley of Pfitschtal or Pfitscher Tal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castello Estense</span> Medieval castle in Ferrara, Italy

The Castello Estense or castello di San Michele is a moated medieval castle in the center of Ferrara, northern Italy. It consists of a large block with four corner towers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ljubljana Castle</span> Building in Ljubljana, Slovenia

Ljubljana Castle is a castle complex standing on Castle Hill above downtown Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. It is a key landmark of the town. Originally a medieval fortress, it was probably constructed in the 11th century and rebuilt in the 12th century. It acquired its present outline with an almost complete overhaul in the 15th century, whereas the majority of the buildings date to the 16th and 17th centuries. Initially a defense structure and since the first half of the 14th century the seat of the lords of Carniola, it was since the early 19th century used for various other purposes and today is used as a major cultural venue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Château de la Madeleine</span>

The Château de la Madeleine is a castle located in the town of Chevreuse, in the French département of Yvelines. In a good state of preservation, it was built on the top of a hill and dominates the town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palace of the Kings of Navarre of Olite</span> Fortification in Navarre, Spain

The Palace of the Kings of Navarre of Olite or Royal Palace of Olite is a castle-palace in the town of Olite, in Navarre, Spain. It was one of the seats of the Court of the Kingdom of Navarre, since the reign of Charles III "the Noble" until its conquest by Castile (1512).

Surely there is no king with a more beautiful castle or palace and with so many gilded rooms (...) it could not say or even could imagine how magnificent and sumptuous is this palace (...)

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Alcázar of Madrid</span> Former fortress now grounds for the royal household in Madrid

The Royal Alcázar of Madrid was a fortress located at the site of today's Royal Palace of Madrid, Madrid, Spain. The structure was originally built in the second half of the ninth century by the Muslims, then extended and enlarged over the centuries, particularly after 1560. It was at this time that the fortress was converted into a royal palace, and Madrid became the capital of the Spanish Empire. Despite being a palace, the great building kept its original arabic title of Alcázar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saarbrücken Castle</span>

Saarbrücken Castle is a Baroque château in Saarbrücken, the capital of Saarland. It is located in the district of Alt-Saarbrücken on the left bank of the Saar. Earlier, a medieval castle and a Renaissance castle stood on the same site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schloss Herten</span>

Herten Castle is a moated castle situated in the town of Herten in the administrative district of Recklinghausen in the state of North Rhine Westphalia, Germany. It is located within an old English landscape garden and its first mentioning dates back to 1376. In 1962, the main castle building was declared a cultural heritage monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atatürk Museum Mansion</span> House museum in Çankaya District, Ankara

Atatürk Museum Mansion is a historic house museum in Ankara, Turkey. It was the residence of President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk between 1921 and 1932, during the early years of the Republic. The museum is situated on Çankaya St. within the Çankaya Campus. It is situated right beside the Çankaya Mansion.

References

  1. "Massafra, Region Puglia, Italy". Archived from the original on 2011-06-13. Retrieved 2011-06-20.