Ruffano ( Salentino: ) is a town and ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' in the province of Lecce, located in the Apulia region of southeast

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Main sights

*Mother church of ''Natività della Beata Maria Vergine'' (1706–1713) *Church of Madonna del Carmine, built in the 16th century above a Byzantine cave church from the 12th century *Castello Brancaccio, a castle overlooking the town (1626) *Crucifix Crypt, near the boundary with

Casarano Casarano (Salentino: ) is a town and sixth most populous ''comune'' in the Italy, Italian Provinces of Italy, province of Lecce, in the Apulia region of South-East Italy. The town's economy is mostly agriculture-based, with olive oil being the main ...

*Grotta della Trinità ("Trinity Grotto"), used since Neolithic times. Starting from the 9th century, it housed a community of hermit monks and in the 11th century, it was turned into a religious place, as testified by remains of

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

frescoes.

References

Cities and towns in Apulia Localities of Salento {{Puglia-geo-stub