Minervino Murge

Minervino Murge is a town of 8,400 people (2021) in the province of Barletta-Andria-Trani (BA) in the Italian region of Apulia (Puglia), on the western flank of the Murgia Barese mountain chain. It lies largely within the borders of the Alta Murgia National Park.

Old town

The town's economy is based mainly on agriculture and herding. The karstic geology of the area has conditioned its main crops: grapes, olives, wheat, and almonds.

• 🌍 Minervino Murge railway station. It is served by the Barletta-Spinazzola railway, which is served only by regional trains. 

• Provincial road 3 Minervino-Spinazzola (SP 3) is a two-lane artery in each direction.

• 🌍 Chiesa S. Maria Assunta. The medieval former Cathedral of the Assumption was built under Norman rule, but mostly rebuilt from 1519 until the consecration in 1608. 
• Borgo Antico "Scesciola" — the old town. The word "Scesciola" comes from ancient Arabic and means "labyrinth". It is so named for the intersection of narrow streets and flights of stairs that give it the characteristics of the labyrinth.
• 🌍 Castel del Monte. A citadel and castle on a hill built during the 1240s by King Frederick II. In the 18th century, the castle's interior marbles and remaining furnishings were removed. It has neither a moat nor a drawbridge. Described by the Enciclopedia Italiana as "the most fascinating castle built by Frederick II", the site is protected as a World Heritage Site. It also appears on the Italian version of the one cent Euro coin. 
• Baroque church of the Immacolata Concezione
• 15th century tower
• Votive lighthouse of the municipal villa. Built in the Fascist era and inaugurated in 1932 , it was designed to commemorate the fallen Fascists. After the Second World War and the capitulation of the fascist regime, many opponents of the regime wanted to tear it down, but then they opted for another solution, the elimination and abrasion of fascist writings and symbols, thus becoming the no longer commemorative monumen. of the "Fascist martyrs of Puglia", but of the "martyrs of Puglia" (as can be seen in the inscription on the pediment). The structure is 32 m high, measures 14 m at the base.
• 🌍 Caves of Altamura. 

• Alta Murgia National Park (Parco Nazionale dell'Alta Murgia). A 678-km² park that is part of a larger Special Protection Area established to protect the grass steppe, lesser kestrel's habitat. (updated Sep 2021)