Via Cava

Via Cava in Taranto's old city runs alongside a system of underground chambers cut into the rock for storage, production and domestic use.

Why it matters

The hypogea reveal how the historic island settlement adapted its rock and limited space to everyday needs. Their varied uses connect Taranto's medieval urban life with earlier quarrying and later craft production.

What to notice

The chambers include spaces used as oil mills, cellars, granaries and workshops. A medieval kiln complex with firing structures and settling tanks documents ceramic production, while the surrounding street preserves the relationship between the underground spaces and the built city above.

Context and history

The depression that became Via Cava was used from antiquity and regularised over time. Medieval residents expanded chambers into the rock, often for storage and production. Most hypogea were owned by noble, religious and ecclesiastical institutions. Some kilns ceased operation as housing expanded and craft production shifted elsewhere.