Loggia Balsamo

A balcony carried on pointed arches and nine carved corbels projects from a palace near Piazza Duomo in Brindisi. Commonly dated to the fourteenth century and associated with the Angevin mint, the loggia has belonged to the Balsamo family since the early nineteenth century.

Why it matters

Domestic medieval architecture rarely survived Brindisi's later rebuilding, making the loggia one of the city's few visible remnants of late medieval civic life. Municipal accounts identify it as part of a large building that may have housed the Angevin mint. Its carved corbels form a distinctive sculptural ensemble in the Salento.

What to notice

Two pointed arches rest on moulded pilasters below the balcony. The arches were later walled up when the space was used as a shop. Above them, the balcony rests on nine corbels joined by small arches; each corbel bears four carved figures, including grotesque heads, fantastic animals and human busts. Their precise meaning remains uncertain.

Context and history

The loggia is generally dated to the fourteenth century, during the period of Angevin rule. Local historians have associated it with the mint, citing a 1565 document that calls the building the “Sedile della Zecca.” Whatever its original function, it belonged to a larger complex near the Duomo. The Balsamo family acquired the property in stages during the early nineteenth century, giving the loggia its present name.