Otranto Attractions

The coast road traverses the seaside resort of San Cataldo which has a good beach and a lighthouse, and comes to Otranto (15km/9mi; pop. 5,000), a little fishing town beautifully situated in a bay. Under the name of Hydrus or Hydruntum, often referred to in the ancient sources as a port of embarkation for Apollonia in Epirus, Otranto was destroyed by the Turks in 1480. From the Castello, built in 1495-98, there is a view across the Straits of Otranto (75km/47mi wide) to the mountains of Albania. The cathedral of the Santissima Annunziata (begun 1080) contains ancient columns with 12th century capitals, a unique mosaic pavement, completely preserved, with representations of the months and of heroic subjects (1163-66) and a five-aisled crypt. In a side street in the upper part of the town is the little church of San Pietro (10th-11th centuries), with a Byzantine dome and frescoes, depicting the saints and scenes of the life of Christ.