Capital of Olive Oil

A symbol of olive oil, fascinating for its architecture and rich for the presence of artistic and cultural works, BITONTO is a city in which the grandeur of history and timeless traditions can be perceived.

An area where olive trees, with their gnarled trunks and lush green leaves, characterise the landscape leading down to the sea and are the emblem of the Murgia.

The city, says the heraldic motto, chooses the olive tree as an emblem of peace and a symbol of openness and welcome. An olive tree of great proportions, majestic, whose oil possesses exceptional organoleptic qualities, is the 'Cima di Bitonto' cultivar, a variety that from here reaches as far as the north-eastern area of Basilicata.

The olive tree also stands out on the town's coat of arms and oil is still the town's most important and valuable economic resource.

It is precisely in oil, the so-called yellow gold, that Bitonto finds its wealth. The ogliarola, Bitonto's olive, was already traded during the 13th century, triggering what was then an initial, timid glow of industrial revolution.

The historical centre is a treasure chest full of artistic treasures. Walking along the ancient 'chianche' of the old town, the sound of footsteps punctuates the gaze of the traveller who observes the multitude of architectural beauties in enchantment.

It is a journey through time that begins with the Angevin Tower, an element of strength and openness, which with its mightiness is the only survivor of the thirty towers that delimited the urban area, and the adjacent Porta Baresana, placed to guard the route to Bari and Santo Spirito.

Not far away is the 'Devanna' National Gallery of Apulia (the only one in the region), housed in the sumptuous Renaissance Palazzo Sylos-Calò. On the walls of the Gallery are works by incredible artists such as Veronese, De Nittis, Delacroix, Poussin and Giaquinto, whose painting spans the centuries unchanged.

Wandering through the historical centre, one is dazzled by the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta and San Valentino, one of the most complete examples of Apulian Romanesque architecture, which with its majesty and elegance watches over the inhabitants of the old town. Inside is the extraordinary floor mosaic of the Grifo, dating from the mid-11th century.

The old town reveals unexpected gems: Piazza Cavour is dotted with churches and historical palaces, small streets oozing with history, and old street lamps with soft lights accompanying the traveller, who has no choice but to surrender to the incredible beauty of Bitonto.

During the Easter period, the calendar of processional events of Holy Week are moments not to be missed, as well as in May the Patronal Festival in honour of Maria SS Immacolata with the historical procession in memory of the battle in 1700 between the Spanish and the Austrians for the conquest of the city, and the festival dedicated to the Medical Saints Cosmas and Damian, celebrated in October and attracting the faithful also from outside the region.

To visit: Co-cathedral of St Valentine, Church of St Francis of Assisi, Church of the Crucifix, Church of the Purgatory, Sylos-Vulpano Palace, Sylos-Calò Palace, Angevin Tower, Archaeological Museum, National Gallery of Modern Art.

Photos by: Domenico Ciocia, Ezio Marrone, Andrea Melato, Gaetano Loporto, Francesco Racaniello.