Colosso di Barletta

Known to Barlettans as il Gigante, the Colossus is a bronze imperial statue about four and a half metres tall, standing beside the Basilica of the Santo Sepolcro. The late-antique work is generally dated to the fifth century and is thought to portray the emperor Theodosius II.

Why it matters

The Colossus is one of Barletta's defining civic symbols and a rare survival of monumental bronze sculpture from late antiquity. Its history links the city with the wider Byzantine world, while its prominent place beside the Santo Sepolcro has made the figure part of the fabric of the historic centre.

What to notice

The emperor wears a diadem and cuirass, with a raised right arm and a globe in the left hand. The figure stands on a stone pedestal beside the Romanesque church. The scale of the bronze and its setting in an open piazza make it a striking presence within the city's architectural landscape.

Context and history

The statue's identification is not certain: it is commonly associated with Theodosius II, though older accounts identified the figure as Heraclius. Its arrival in Barletta is also debated. Local tradition links it to a shipwrecked Venetian vessel around 1204, while another hypothesis proposes that Frederick II brought it from Ravenna.