Apartment, 48 m²

Conversano, Bari (province)

Conversano - Castle of the Acquaviva Counts


It's not every day that you can acquire a historical piece of great importance in one of the symbolic cities of the Puglia Region.
Coldwell Banker is proud to be able to commercialize the second tower for the construction period of the Conti Acquaviva Castle in Conversano.
The tower allows you to enjoy a panorama that extends as far as the eye can see, both from the generously sized window and climbing up onto the "terrace"!
Its uses can be various, if desired it can be used as a private home or as a b&b, giving the possibility to locals and tourists who come to discover our splendid region to be able to live in a historic and evocative environment.

Historical notes of the Castle of Conversano:
The Aragonese Castle which was built by the Normans around 1054 for the pure purpose of a defensive fortress and became the residence of the Acquaviva Counts and was transformed through successive alterations into a sumptuous stately home.
The fort was built on ancient megalithic walls, dating back to the 6th-4th century BC, still visible at the base of the Torre Maestra, the only surviving Norman tower. The work as a whole has a trapezoidal plan with the four corners facing the cardinal points. In the four corners stand four towers: 1. the Maestra tower or Norman tower, about 25 meters high, is built with regular limestone ashlars of which the walls are made up (begun in the 11th century by the first count of Conversano Goffredo Altavilla the Norman); 2. tower similar to the main tower but of more modest dimensions, in whose walls you can admire beautiful Gothic windows and on the terrace a belvedere embellished with arches.
From the 15th century the county of Conversano was governed by the Acquaviva family who transformed the ancient fortress into a princely residence and consolidated some of its defensive elements. And in this period Giulio Antonio Acquaviva had the 3. cylindrical tower built, which has become the symbol of Conversano today, to replace one of the four quadrangular towers of the castle. From the crenellation at the top, it is clear that the tower was remodeled in a later period; 4. the polygonal tower which was built by Andrea Matteo Acquaviva, son of Giulio Antonio. The tower has the characteristic shape of a shoe, with the walls slightly inclined to cushion the blows of the artillery. On the terrace there is a crenellation suitable for the mouths of the cannons, while the narrow slits along the sides of the polygon allowed for the positioning of the ammunition. Today the tower is partially underground, but was once surrounded by a defensive moat. The windows and balconies of the façade overlooking Piazza Castello certainly date back to the 19th century.
Next to this polygonal tower, there was the original drawbridge which was used to cross the surrounding moat before the castle was adorned with the current monumental entrance on the south-west side.
The Castle houses the Municipal Art Gallery, where the seventeenth-century canvases of the "La Gerusalemme Liberata" cycle by Finoglio are exhibited.
Inside the Castle, in addition to the Finoglio art gallery, there is, on the second floor, the Francesco Netti art gallery, and the exhibition of historical clothes entitled "Wedding at the Castle". Furthermore, the castle has a space for temporary exhibitions and a conference room, always located on the second floor.