Acquarica del Capo

Comune in Apulia, Italy

39°54′46″N 18°14′46″E / 39.91278°N 18.24611°E / 39.91278; 18.24611CountryItalyRegion ApuliaProvinceLecce (LE)Government • MayorFrancesco FerraroArea • Total18.7 km² (7.2 sq mi)Elevation110 m (360 ft)Population • Total4,710 • Density250/km² (650/sq mi)DemonymAcquaricesiTime zoneUTC+1 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)Postal codeDialing code0833Patron saintSt. Charles BorromeoSaint dayNovember 4WebsiteOfficial website

Acquarica del Capo was a town and comune in the province of Lecce, Apulia, south-eastern Italy. In 2019 it was merged with the adjacent Presicce to form Presicce-Acquarica.

It is located in Salento, 10 km from the Ionian Sea and 60 km from Lecce. Its origins are medieval and it grew around a Norman fortification. Later it was transformed into a castle town by the Aragonese.

Main sights

• Medieval castle. It was probably a Norman fortification around which the village developed in the Middle Ages and was later transformed in a Castle in the 14th century by Giovanni Antonio Orsini Del Balzo, Prince of Taranto. Only a round tower remains from the original four. In the court can be seen the so-called "Pila di Pompignano" saved from destruction in 1982 by the local writer Carlo Stasi who wrote its legend.^[3]
• Church of San Carlo Borromeo
• Church of San Giovanni Battista
• Church Madonna dei Panetti, at Celsorizzo, one of the most ancient constructions in the lower Salento.
• Fortified masseria of Celsorizzo. A huge Norman Tower with Byzantine frescoes in the Chapel at its base.
• Church of Madonna di Pompignano

References