What to see · Martina Franca

More places of interest

• Sant'Antonio dei Cappuccini

  The church of Sant'Antonio ai Cappuccini, in Martina Franca, was built in the sixteenth century on the old grange of the Basilian monks. It holds the old fresco of the Madonna dell'Odegitria, from which, according to the sources, the Valle d'Itria takes its name, the valley in which the town lies.

  What to see

  Inside are altars of fine cabinetwork and many canvases painted between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Several works are by Leonardo Antonio Olivieri, a painter born in Martina Franca in 1689 and introduced to painting by an uncle: barely out of adolescence he moved to Naples, joined the school of Francesco Solimena and became one of his most appreciated pupils. He died in Naples in 1752, and most of his surviving paintings are divided between his birthplace and his adopted city.

  In the Capuchin church are two of his tempera wall paintings, Jacob wrestling with the angel and The dream of the ladder, which tell the story of Jacob, and some oil paintings: a Saint Peter, a Saint Paul, an Immaculate Conception and an Assumption.

  Visiting

  The rooms of the old friary house the San Girolamo Emiliani - Villaggio del Fanciullo foundation, which helps young people with family problems. The church's opening hours should be checked on site.

  Our editors' tip

  There are more canvases by Olivieri in town: in the sacristy of the Carmine church is the Virgin of Mount Carmel giving the scapular to Saint Simon Stock, signed and dated 1720.

Some links may earn BigItalia a commission, at no extra cost to you.