A trullo is a traditional apulian dry stone hut with a conical roof. Some trace the origin of trulli back as far as 1500 BC, when the Classical Greek term tholos was the name given to a dome on a tomb known as the Treasury of Atreus. Others, however, trace it back to the Byzantine Greek term torullos, the domed hall in the imperial palace of Constantinople. Finally, there is the Latin word turris with the related words turulla, trulla, trullum indicating a small tower.
There are many theories behind the origin of the design. One of the more popular theories is that due to high taxation on property the people of Puglia created dry wall constructions so that they could be dismantled when inspectors were in the area.
Their Style of construction is specific to the Itria Valley, in the Murge area of the Italian region of Apulia. They may be found in the towns of Alberobello, Locorotondo, Fasano, Cisternino, Martina Franca and Ceglie Messapica. With its thick walls and its inability to form multi-storey structures, it is wasteful of ground space and consequently ill-suited to high density settlement. However, being constructed of small stones, it has a flexibility and adaptability of form which are most helpful in tight urban situations. In the countryside, trullo domes were built singly or in groups of up to five, or sometimes in large farmyard clusters of a dozen or two dozen, but never for the occupancy of more than a single rural family.
Trulli were generally constructed as temporary field shelters and storehouses or as permanent dwellings by small proprietors or agricultural labourers. Some trullo houses have had their perimeter walls substantially raised so that their cones can be hidden from view, making the buildings look like ordinary houses.
A number of conical roofs have a truncated top with a round hole in it covered by a movable circular slab. Access to the hole is by an outside stairway built into the roof. These trulli were for grain, hay or straw storage. Since the beginning of the century, a large number of trullo houses have been restored and converted into second homes or self-catering cottages. In 1999, rebuilding a trullo roof would cost about 3 million liras (about 1,500 euros), in 2009 the cost rose up to 15,000 euros. Today, trulli are a UNESCO world heritage site.
July 10, 2013
Photo source: wikipedia.org
I. C.
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