Palazzo dei Marchesi del Tufo, Matino
Matino is the ideal base to explore surrounding Salento, not to mention access the wonderful beaches and lidos of the Ionian Coast. But in a land so rich in art and history, the town may not spring immediately to mind as ‘top of the list’ of Puglia’s plethora of cultural hotspots. Competition, however, is stiff; within a 5 to 45 minute drive there are literally dozens, if not hundreds of Southern Italian marvels.
But like so many magical places, the layers of Matino reveal themselves slowly and it was only during the last day of my most recent visit that I finally had the opportunity to see inside Palazzo dei Marchesi del Tufo, located less than 100m from La Dimora di Jason. There is actually a great view of our roof terrace from the roof of the palazzo (the 10th photo from the top), not to mention all of Matino old town, the countryside and the coast. Entry is free, although only possible on a couple of mornings each week but if you’re lucky, as we were, you’ll have the place all to yourself.
Overlooking Piazza san Giorgio, the palazzo was constructed c.1500 over the ruins of a 13th-century fortress as the home of the feudal lords ‘del Tufo’ of Matino. Giuseppe del Tufo went from being a baron to a marquis in 1644 and a second phase of construction took place from 1711. It seems the palazzo’s stables were created at this time. Heavily frescoed, the stables are quite literally breath-taking and certainly one of the more hidden jewels of Salento. The long, vaulted room lined in depictions of domestic and exotic animals at play with cherubs and even a bishop, also features a line of niched mangers, for want of a better description. Each niche once contained the name of the horse that took its feed there, written in big serif letters just below a conch shell at the top of the arch. Only one remains - Velocipede - the name seemingly attesting to the horse’s speed (?) and the beautiful space attesting to the love of its master.
The palazzo contains around 40 rooms, many of which are open to the public as MACma, Matino’s contemporary art museum. There is also an extraordinary quarry under the palazzo although I think it warrants its own post! A big thank you to Secco Sistemi (seccosistemi.com) who recently crafted beautiful metal doors and windows for the Palazzo dei Marchesi del Tufo and very generously allowed me to use a couple of images - the first and last above - of the palazzo’s exterior to create this post.