Apulia Country Road

by Norma Brandsberg

Title

Apulia Country Road

Artist

Norma Brandsberg

Medium

Photograph - Photograph

Description

Apulia, the southern region forming the heel of Italy’s “boot,” is known for its whitewashed hill towns, centuries-old farmland and hundreds of kilometers of Mediterranean coastline. Alberobello and the Itria Valley are home to “trulli,” stone huts with distinctive conical roofs where this country road photograph was snapped.

Traveling in an assortment of regions opens up to all kinds of stories tha come with various lifestyles. One such story captivated me remind me of the various ways people try to avoid paying taxes.

The story of the cone shaped stone homes of Alberobello in the Bari district is one such story.

This town of 11,000 inhabitants in Puglia, Italy has the largest collection of original trulli homes. We elected to rent one on our trip and found them enchanting. These little white-washed conical structures remind me of fantasy structures. These tiny homes have been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Program since 1996.

They are built of only of dry stone masonry materials such as limestone, no mortar or cement in the structures in an attempt to avoid paying taxes. During the 14th century the feudal lords, the Counts of Conversano, in order to evade an edict by the Kingdom of Naples that demanded tribute, or tax, on every new urban construction. When tax inspectors would come to the area, these dry stone structures would be dismantled. The feudal lords could then avoid paying new settlement taxes.

The trulli, the characteristic cone-roofed houses of Alberobello, Apulia, make up one of the 54 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Italy.

The name derives from the late Greek word for dome (τρούλος; in Italian, cupola), and refers to the ancient stone houses with conical roofs, constructed with the abundant limestone from the plateau of Apulia’s Murge zone.

These impressive and unique structures, largely present in the Valley of Itria, can also be found in the Provinces of Brindisi, Bari and Taranto.

Their internal structure, compact and without any elements of support, remains durable and cool in the hot summer sun of Italy.

So the next time the tax collector comes calling on your property, might you consider dismantling your home to avoid property taxes?


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October 9th, 2022

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