[I imagine towns as boxes, each containing different things, which no other boxes, not even the most magical ones, can contain.] Fabrizio Caramagna.
A big, magic box is the definition that best describes the Marquis’s palace of Laterza. A reference point for the cultural life of the town, the Marquis’s palace is a XVII century building, which has been given a new lease of life in the past few years, with exhibitions, performances, concerts and many other cultural events.
It is a box full of historical hints, legends and charm, a kind of a doorway to the historical center. The building was originally conceived as a castle in 1393, when the feud of Laterza was still part of the principality of Taranto. That time was characterized by bitter conflicts among different towns, and Laterza had to face the assaults by Castellaneta and Matera. In the centuries, the castle was destroyed and a palace took its place. Today, some remains of the original building are still visible: part of the moat, part of the walls with their battlements, which protected the northern side of the so called castrum de tertia (the original Latin name of the village) and, towards south, a tunnel which led to the ravine and allowed people to escape from the castle.
In 1546 Giovanni Battista I D’Azzia became Marquis of Laterza and let the castle be refurbished as a late Renaissance residential building, as witnessed in the inscription of 1548, still visible in the white-stone, bipartite emblem, above the entrance. The east side of the building has been remodelled several times over the centuries, while the south side still preserves many Renaissance architectural features and a balcony, from where the marquis used to announce his decisions to the population. On the north side, the building features some windows with bars, which lightened the prison of the palace. Inside the courtyard, a precious fresco representing Saint Anne can still be admired. The fresco was commissioned by Anna Capece, wife of Nicolò Perez-Navarrete, last lord of Laterza until 2 August 1806.
In 1986, the building was ceded to the municipality of Laterza, which has dealt with its restoration and touristic relaunch eversince. Today, the Tourist Information office, the MuMa (the Museum of Majolica) and a conference hall are indeed located in different rooms of the palace.