Our Vieste guides

La Salata
necropolis

Along the road to Peschici, in the scrubland above the sea, the rock keeps the tombs of Gargano's early Christians. A place of silence and water, where history and nature walk side by side.

A guide by the Villa Ulimare family

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The chambers
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The pits
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The niches
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Inside the cave
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The arches

An underground chamber of the necropolis, carved into pale rock — Greetings from La Salata

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History

The tombs of the early Christians

Between the 3rd and 6th centuries AD, the families who lived on this coast carved the tombs of their loved ones into the rock. It is one of the oldest Christian sites in Gargano.

The burials open into caves and underground chambers, some in the cliff face, others further inland; a few are reached through a passage cut into the stone. About a kilometre away stood a large Roman villa, at Santa Maria di Merino, where olive oil or wine was made: its tanks and channels still survive.

Few things were found in the tombs, but they are precious: above all oil lamps bearing Christian symbols, some of African type. Today you can see them at Vieste's Archaeological Museum.

A warm hug from Vieste,
the Villa Ulimare family

The rock of the necropolis, weathered by time

The necropolis's ID card

Age: Late Antiquity, between the 3rd and 6th centuries AD
Where: On the road to Peschici, about 7 km from Vieste
How: Guided tours only, by booking
Length: About an hour, outdoors, on foot
The finds: At Vieste's Archaeological Museum

The tombs

Three ways to carve the rock

As you walk among the chambers, look for these three shapes: they are the same ones you find in the catacombs of Rome.

The loculus
A rectangular niche carved into the wall, sealed with a terracotta slab.
The arcosolium
An arch carved into the wall, with the tomb beneath it.
The pit grave
A tomb dug into the rock floor, covered with large tiles.

An arch carved into the rock, with tombs and greenery all around

Nature

Why it's called La Salata

In one cave a spring wells up, its water clear but brackish: hence the name, which means “the salty one”. Two streams run through the valley to the sea, among Mediterranean scrub and a rare patch of watercress. Along the Gargano coast, from Lesina to Mattinata, there are more than two hundred brackish springs like this one.

Look closely at the rock: it is dotted with tiny marine fossils, nummulites, which tell of a time when the sea covered this land. With a little luck you'll meet frogs, terrapins and, at sunset, a barn owl in flight.

What to bringComfortable shoes, a hat and a bottle of water: the tour is outdoors.

The visit

Where to find it

On the coast road to Peschici, near Scialmarino beach. By car it's just a few minutes from Vieste.

See them together

Three stops close to each other, in the same morning.

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La Salata necropolis
Road to Peschici, about 7 km
Guided tours by booking with Vieste's cultural centre, in Piazzetta Cappuccini, on the Amerigo Vespucci seafront.
Call +39 353 429 9517
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Santa Maria di Merino
About a kilometre away
The sanctuary of Vieste's patron saint, where the procession of 9 May arrives. The Roman villa is right next to it.
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The Roman villa of Merino
Next to the church
Among the olive trees stand the walls and vaults of the large villa where olive oil or wine was made: everyday life, a kilometre from the tombs.