The Enigma of San Mauro!

The Enigma of San Mauro!


Maybe an old example of aridocoltura near the Byzantine church of San Mauro in Gallipoli



Near the ancient Byzantine church of San Mauro Serra on dell'Altolido, not far from Gallipoli, along the coast Gallipoli-Santa Maria al Bagno, about 70m high above sea level, and the Municipality of Sannicola is Notes on the clifftop of the church that slopes towards the sea, a few tens or hundreds of meters, roughly north of this, and more or less the same level, a unique rocky expanse, almost in a sort of off the top again in the valley side of the rocky ridge that looks down towards the sea and the Gulf of Taranto (sea nearby and which dominates the beautiful landscape that you can enjoy there.) In this enigmatic field, a few meters apart, rising piles of stone clearance by the hundreds, some cumulus, others in the form of thick walls, but not too high (no more than 2m the highest, and varying heights from a few decimetres up) or too long (a few decimeters to some meters). The stone material used comes from local geological (in situ). This work clearly anthropogenic impressive. In December 2008, knowing my multifaceted interests, the site was reported to me, and I thank them publicly for this, friends, explorers and researchers of "Avant-garde", which they had encountered during their excursions in the enigmatic individual fields. At first glance, the mysterious area dotted everywhere and in all directions from the mounds, area of considerable size, seems a small stretch of "mirror", but it is unlikely that it is opaque heaps or mounds dolmen tombs, some grave or cist dolmenica uncovered by the time she was supposed to observe, however none of this, at least in that one visit I made in December 2008.

At first sight it is possible that the piles can be larger dolmen small mirror existing and more archaic. But some are too small piles of stones that should be excluded, I believe, that the lytic complex, overall, as it appears today, of Serra High in San Mauro, is linked to religious services, funeral or other ritual. At first you do not even detect any particular geometry in the positioning of piles, creating a maze with no directions, casual and close. Maybe, just maybe, there are just like any well-designed action of removing stones, rock outcrops on the islands, to make room for farming in areas of land, crop land, it is well known as the peasants of Salento, a few more decades ago, any cultivated land on the compartment "scalps", the rocky outcrops, as they are called in the vernacular Salento, at least in the area of sweaters! In the stone clearance for agricultural land use, preferably, the stones collected were deposited on areas of rock affiorane, when you're not used to walls of separation or terracing, foundations or various constructions. There heaps of these, some are in ruins, others still note the juxtaposition of these stones to create smooth walls, though rough, given the nature of local limestone used and not square, and live in areas of complex information. Among the piles you can still go on foot, and there you can see layers of soil or plants, or tanned full of that soil on limestone bedrock of the hill that rises slightly 'most anywhere with irregularities. This is a stretch from the suggestions that fills megalithic questions. In the formulation of hypotheses initial interpretation, that I immediately formulated a framework for the 'aridocoltura. Maybe, but not necessarily only for a vineyard! The overlooking the sea, damp winds from the west, southwest, and in part from the north-west, can trace that side of the greenhouse, and channeled into that sweet valley raised the capacity of the piles, "Paretone, and walls , to inform and dry limestone, to condense the moisture, the suggestion of a nearby religious center of influence greek-byzantine, I have now assumed an explanation of the agricultural complex. In addition, the irregular arrangement of overlapping forces the wind winding roads it loses energy, and perhaps more readily facilitates this process of condensation of moisture transport, in addition to the normal action of moisture condensation, adsorption with piles of rocks. The braking action of the wind, protected crops any better then this practice; are not uncommon in Salento, even today, especially right along the coast but not limited to the circles of dry stone walls built to protect from the wind ( and perhaps with the intention of irrigation uptake of atmospheric moisture), home to many species of trees! The water condensed on the surfaces of rocks to dry one thousand, then percolating to the ground by gravity, where the roots of irrigated crops in the vicinity of the mounds themselves. I do not remember if I saw you there inselvatichitasi vine, a sign perhaps of an ancient vineyards of the area, but as soon as I return I will make the event more.



It is in any case, the mystery of the structure described, in which most probably could only result from a simple act of removing stones to clear land for agriculture, which in this case, then perhaps only effect unexpected (or expected, perhaps at the suggestion of the monk-rite greek farmers, who had the Basilian monastery near the nearby church, or a much more archaic and rooted in experience, local knowledge), has led to better water and then grow the plants grown there, in one place, in itself, very rocky and barren!



The occasion and the stimulus for writing this report I have been given by the text released by the Agronomic Research Center of dr. Antonio Bruno, entitled "I'll give you water from the Salento Lecce" which can be read, and invite you to do so for further development of the above and on dell'aridocoltura Salento, the link:

http://centrostudiagronomi.blogspot.com/2010/06/ti-faccio-lacqua-dallaria-del-salento.html



Thanks, as always, Dr. Antonio Bruno for its beautiful writings that open the mind and stimulate our curiosity, bringing many important ideas that we risked losing forever, about our culture of Salento, I ask all the experts aridocoltura by condensing a dry stone structures, I discover with surprise and enthusiasm vivid, still be active even at Ugento in the revival of this archaic technology, visit the archaeological site that I reported, for evaluation, certainly more careful, the hypothesis formulated here humbly!





Oreste Caroppo



In the picture of Serra High in San Mauro, the church of San Mauro is noted above, on the hills. The high valley dotted with heaps of stones piled up, that's what it sees in the photo, center bottom, right between the church, allochthonous eucalyptus tree on the left, at the same level or just below the church.

The photo is of Orestes Caroppo and was taken 13 August 2007, at approximately 15.