Duomo di Santa Maria Annunziata

I’ve rarely been so intrigued by a cathedral! 🤯⛪ The massive mosaic floor is absolutely fascinating — and at times, even a bit funny. It really gives you a sense of how little people knew about the world back then… and it’s wild to think it was all created by a single monk. The chapel containing the bones of 813 martyrs is chilling yet strangely mesmerizing 💀🕯️ The large crypt, with its forest of columns, feels both impressive and peaceful 🏛️ A definite must-see in Otranto!

Amazingly beautiful church. The mosaic floor is beautiful!! I recommend it to everyone!

This is an amazing fit of architecture and art. It also does not feel heavy, not putting you down.

The artwork on the floor is unique, I have never seen a mosaic so big and so well preserved. The only ones that I remember are inside of Venice’s San Pietro (but geometrical shapes) and inside of Constantinople’s Hagia Sophia (but not so well preserved). It is definitely a must if you visit Salento. So much underrated.

This sacred space is unique. Learn about the floor beforehand, and then you will know about it when you visit. It is a whole mosaic floor following ancient techniques. It is a miracle that it was not covered with a new floor in the s XVII.

Like every single cathedral, basilica and church I have visited in Italy, the Cathedral di Santa Maria in Otranto is fantastic. First consecrated in 1088. Highlights inside the Otranto Cathedral include the well preserved 12th Century (1164) mosaic floor/pavement, and the chapel of martyrs where you will find 3 large glass fronted panels showing the limbs and skull bones of 800 or so local Christians killed by invading Ottoman Turks in 1480....look very carefully at the middle panel....are those 6 bullet holes in the top of the skull of one poor individual? Or are they something else? May they all rest in peace. But please make sure you also visit the Cathedral Museum right next door. For a modest 5 euro entrance fee you can marvel at many of the cathedral's religious and artistic treasures ......including a gold thread decorated-silk 17th Century bishop's cloak, a exquisitely embroided 17th Century artisan's dress, silver altar adorations, 3D stone reliefs, and a full map/composite of the mosaic floor inside the cathedral. What a privilege. Grazie Otranto ......Stewart from New Zealand

Here is a place where you can see how ages ago people learned of the Bible. The mosaics told the story of the tree of life and the division of Heaven and Hell. Having survived the conversion to a Mosque and back most of the frescoes were destroyed... butfor some reason they left the images of Mary... and a few of Christ on the cross.

The Cattedrale di Otranto combines a Byzantine and Romanesque style. It was built by the Normans. Nearly 800 civilians and clerics were killed by the Turks who had besieged the town. Their bones are arranged inside the chapel. There are impressive frescoes and mosaics. In the basement, there is the crypt with plenty of columns with different styles of capitals and materials. A priest who met spoke Grico!