The Unesco protected city of Lecce, Southern Italy

Lecce -  Where History Comes Alive

As you travel up the eastern coast of Italy the stunningly beautiful coastal towns glide by, enticing you to stop and enjoy these idyllic coastal resorts. However it is not just the coast which is awe-inspiring. Inland you will find the city of Lecce - an exceptional city; a living museum. The town of Lecce -  capital of Apulio - is steeped in history; the excavations of parts of the Old Town are ongoing and a permanent fixture which the locals accommodate in the midst of their community. The second century Roman ampitheatre has been partially unburried - enough to be used for events today, even though it is at least eighteen centuries old. This ampitheatre sits in the heart of one of Lecce's busy squares. Traffic and pedestrians make their way around it as the dig goes on.

The essence of Lecce is in its history and in the great beauty of the many carved buildings still in use in the town today. The historic buildings of Lecce are recognisable for their soft warm glow. These buildings are carved from rich coloured sandstone called Lecce stone, which is imminently workable. As a product of their building materials, the churches, towers and palaces of Lecce are richly carved and decorated. Their facades are intricate and modulated, Their striking frontages may be weathered and pitted but they retain their integrity and are essentially unharmed by time. Building after building shows this same strikingly intricate frontage to the streets and squares. It is an architectural heritage that must be the envy of most other cities and towns in Italy. It is in fact, sometimes referred to as the Florence of the South.


Lecce remains a city of great dignity. Tourists come through the city gates in small groups, but there is a respectful hush as they make their way through the streets and piazzas. Perhaps there is a touch of awe at the magnificence of these buildings. Lecce has risen above the temptation to become a highly commercial tourist town, even though it has much to lure in the tourists, with so much living history within the city walls. Lecce is not a town for trinkets and souvenir shops. It is a town of art, of bookshops, of cathedrals and museums. It is a serious town surrounded by its more frivolous neighbours.


The Baroque period is where Lecce put on the mantle of its present day character. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries many of its current

buildings were first erected, and many of its older buildings were given a Baroque-style face-lift. Because of the consistency of the Baroque style that pervades much of the Old Town, Lecce is now on the nomination list for preservation as a UNESCO World Heritage site. A final decision has not yet been made,

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