Salento is the area of the Puglia region with the oldest history, and has tenaciously held on to the ancient rhythms of its past civilisations: a spiritual world which can be seen from the arcane geometric symbolism, human and solar, with hunting scenes and cave paintings of daily life found in the grottos of “Zinsulusa”, “Romanelli” and the “Cavallo” at Porto Badisco. There was also the time when the area was known as the Terra d’Otranto (the earth of Otranto), when the population was unified, culturally and linguistically but was more Greek than Latin, and when a few small wealthy cities sprang up, such as; Otranto, Gallipoli, Nardò and Galatina, all surrounded by a myriad of small habitations, the major part away from a coast perennially under invasion. The aristocratics of the area lived in Lecce, in reality they evolved from hard workers who gained their wealth from the land. The proximity of the Adriatic Sea at Porto Badisco is where, you find possibly, the area most important to Salento’s history. About ten years or so ago, the Grotto of Cervi, a natural grotto was discovered to house cave paintings drawn by prehistoric man during the Neolithic period. It is thought that they took refuge in the grotto and used it as a home. Salento is in fact, the most easterly area of Italy, and as such is a frontier to the Middle East. Salento history itself is steeped in links with the East and legend has it that the Cretans founded Lecce itself. The Mediterranean has also played a major part in shaping Salento’s past and the population that lives here today. During the Bronze Age the Salento peninsula was inhabited by an Indo-European population, which extended from the south to beyond the Alps following the Adriatic coastline. The dolmen and menhir found in the deep south of Salento lie testament to this part of Salento and indeed, Italy’s history. It is tragic therefore, that many of these examples of Bronze Age man have been demolished and spoiled. The first settlers to the area came from Mesopotamia around the 5th century B.C. and they introduced agriculture, horse breeding and ceramics. These invaders gave a determined push in the direction of the establishment of cities, and this age is noted for the many city walls that were built and lay monument today to their dominance of the region. However, not to be forgotten was the influence of the Greeks from the 8th century B.C. who had established coastal towns such as Gallipoli, Otranto, Taranto, and are indeed referred to in the Magna Grecia (Greek Magna Carta), little centres more prestigious than those in the motherland!
To the area south of Lecce exists today a sort of “Language Island” and culture, which is in part Greek and part Griko. The area of Greek Salento is comprised of nine communities (Calimera. Castrignano dei Greci, Corigliano d’Otranto, Martano, Martignano, Melpignano, Soleto, Sternatia, Zollino), however, traditionally this area extended in an arc from Gallipoli to Otranto. In this region, you will find traces of Greek culture in the architecture, folk music, and food and wine. The elements of Greek culture have fused with the Salento culture to make this an original and autonomous cultural centre. After the Tarantine War, Salento was divided into Roman provinces with administrative centres rather than cultural influences. The Romans reinforced their strategic position by building a wall from Urbe to Brindisi, from the foot of the Appian Mountains and the Traiana, and also built ports like San Cataldo and at Roca. Their defence of the Balkan shoreline was intense and the Goths, Longobardi and Byzantines repeatedly attacked them. These last ultimately dominated this region for centuries and have left their indelible mark on the region. Later, the persistent persuasion of the church from the east brought religious life back to the area, and the first spearhead was led by isolated individuals seeking refuge from persecution for religious and political reasons, and later by monasteries, in particular the brotherhood established at San Basilio. The Basilians spread throughout the region and the population then divided their time between prayer and working in the fields. Another era of importance in Salento’s history was when it was part of the centre of the expansion of the Turkish Empire. A memorable, albeit extremely distressing, part of that time was the 1480 assault on Otranto to annexe the town. The port was attacked by a heavy fleet of ships under the command of Achmet Pascia, and the town’s resistance was rewarded by the murder of 800 inhabitants. It was for this, and other reasons of possible invasions, that the Spaniards decided to build coastal towers. Realised under the reign of Carlo V in the 1500’s, the towers were built as warning lookouts fro invasions from the sea. These towers can still be seen today along the Pugliese coastline in Salento, and are in the most part still in their entirety. During this same period, Lecce, became one of the most beautiful and important cities in Italy, second only to Napoli as the cultural and artistic centre of the country. Nobility and scholars rubbed shoulders under the deep baroque architecture and the town and its immediate surrounding area was covered with a vast sense of serenity and harmony, however with a strength derive from this new breath of “extravagance”. Favourite of all is the soft, Leccese stone (the Pietra Leccese), the baroque edifices civil and religious were carved from it. Lecce and all of Salento are full of cherubs, griffons, elaborate carvings, and balustrades, carved from the so-called ‘marble of the poor’. In Greek Salento the towns of, Corigliano d’Otranto, Melpignano, Soleto are rich in these artistic expressions of the age. Bishop Pappacoda was one of the major contributors to the creation of these wonderfully ornate edifices at the time. It was a time when academics and religious believers rubbed shoulders together to promote a unique culture, which fitted with the times and the air they breathed.