Piazza Maria Santissima di Anglona

Piazza Maria Santissima di Anglona is a central civic square in Tursi. The cathedral of the Annunziata and the remains of a Gothic castle stand within the square, while its name recalls the Madonna venerated at the sanctuary on the nearby hill of Anglona.

Why it matters

The square brings together civic and religious landmarks in the centre of Tursi. The municipal offices are located here, and the adjacent cathedral and castle remains place different periods of the town’s history in the same public space. The name links the square to the Marian sanctuary at Anglona, whose pilgrimage is an important devotional tradition in the area.

What to notice

The cathedral of the Annunziata stands within the square; regional sources describe it as a fifteenth-century church rebuilt after a fire in 1988. Its interior includes a Latin-cross plan with three naves, a coffered wooden ceiling, marble altars, a wooden crucifix and a baptismal font. Excavations in the piazza have also revealed remains of the Gothic castle and finds including tombs, coins, amphora fragments and lead shot bearing Greek and Latin inscriptions.

Context and history

Tursi’s history includes the ancient settlements of Pandosia and Anglona and the later fortified quarter of the Rabatana. The square’s name refers to the sanctuary of Maria Santissima di Anglona, about ten kilometres east of the town. The sanctuary’s Virgin was crowned in 1901; in 1951, Bishop Pasquale Quaremba led celebrations marking the fiftieth anniversary. Accounts differ on when and how the square itself took its present form, so no precise construction date is assigned here.