Cultural
The Trulli of Alberobello
Alberobello, Italie
Inscribed 1996
Photo : MPhernambucq (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Located in the municipality of Alberobello in the Itria Valley of Puglia, southern Italy, this site represents an exceptional example of prehistoric building techniques still in use during the modern era. The trulli are traditional dry-stone dwellings with distinctive cone-shaped roofs, constructed without mortar using the corbelling method, a construction technique dating back to prehistoric times. The town developed from the 14th century onwards as a settlement of agricultural workers, with the trulli houses built and rebuilt according to local economic and social conditions. The site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1996 as it bears outstanding testimony to ways of life and forms of land use in the Mediterranean region during the medieval period and beyond. The visual character of Alberobello is defined by the dense clustering of approximately 1,500 trulli, which create a distinctive urban landscape with their whitewashed walls and grey stone roofs. The site remains an important example of spontaneous architecture adapted to the environmental and social conditions of its region.
Location
Alberobello, Italie
Inscription
1996
