Gravina di Riggio

The Gravine are the typical rocky erosions of the Murge plateau; their geological formation is comparable to that of deserts. Small bodies of water, whose flow rate changes seasonally, cut through chalky land that the moisture makes friable. The dry climate does not allow the soil and rocks to produce debris and sediment that could fill bodies of water or limit their erosive power.The Gravine are the typical rocky erosions of the Murge plateau; their geological formation is comparable to that of deserts. Small bodies of water, whose flow rate changes seasonally, cut through chalky land that the moisture makes friable. The dry climate does not allow the soil and rocks to produce debris and sediment that could fill bodies of water or limit their erosive power.

The Gravina di Riggiois north of the territory of Grottaglie. It is 1300 metres long, and roughly 30 metres deep.

It has an inheritance of inestimable naturalistic, historical, and archaeological value. A visit to the Gravina can be divided in three main parts.

The initial part features a 15-metre-long leap in the rock. In the past, one of the area’s attractions was a waterfall, now visible only during periods of heavy rain. The stream stops in the proximity of a wide moat called “Caggione” during the rainy season. In the past this moat was used as a reservoir for the inhabitants of the gravina.

On the left side, right after the initial leap, a huge white layer of calcarenite rock rises. Here one can find the first evidence of the ancient civilizations that lived in the caves. It is a multi-level housing complex, “casa fortezza” (fortress house): natural caves were remodelled by humans and linked together by systems of trapdoors and multi-level stairs. On the right side one can find the slots of a cave used for defence, named “cave of the sentinel”. Some 300 metres ahead on the left one can see the other huge cave complex, hidden by the vegetation. This is called “il Cenobio” (the Cenoby), and it was entirely carved by humans. It is believed that monks from the Basilian community present on the territory used it.

The second area is the “grotta della farmacia” (Pharmacy Cave), reachable by stairs carved into the rock. On the walls of the cave one can find many small holes where it is believed that the monks preserved the various essences, medicines, and medicinal herbs they cultivated and produced. The pharmacy may also have been, in other times, a birdhouse and an ossuary. On the right side instead, one can find traces of the ancient medieval residential area. Not much evidence is left of it, due to the tuff stone mining activities carried out in the past.

The last area opens up as a wide valley floor with descending profiles on both sides. In the initial trait one can find, on the right slope, the “Chiesa-Cripta Minore dei SS. Biagio e Simeone”. This is a small church with completely unadorned walls. There are only photographic testimonies of the original frescos, which were removed during the 1980s. This last trait also features the important “grotta di Quinto Ennio”, the widest natural cave of the gravina.