Ostuni Cathedral was originally a church practising Orthodox rites prior to the year 1000. In 1228-1229, the present Romanesque church was erected by Frederick II of Swabia. The earthquake of 1456, strongly felt in Brindisi, damaged it. During 1469-1495 it was again rebuilt in a Gothic style.
The façade acquired its elegant rose window in the 15th century. The church once had four such windows. One of the portals is dedicated to Saint Blaise (San Biagio), one of the patrons of the city, and has the saint carved on the portal. A restoration in the 1970s tried to remove stucco decorations that covered the original Romanesque and Gothic architecture.
The interior has a number of artworks that covered the ceiling and altars. The Chapel of the Sacred Heart, once of St Cajetan (Gaetano) had a canvas of the saint attributed to Domenico Antonio Vaccaro. The Cappellone dell'Immacolata was decorated in the 18th century. The sacristy has a large venerated icon depicting Saint Oronzo. One Chapel is dedicated to the patron saints of Ostuni: Saint Blaise, Saint Augustine, Saint Orontius, and Saint Irene. The church once had a canvas, now stolen, of Santa Lucia by Palma il Giovane. The apse has an altarpiece of the Assunta, and the chapel of Santa Maria della Sanità has a fresco depicting Saint Catherine of Alexandria. A niche of the counter-facade has a 15th-century statue of Christ.
The cathedral archives hold nearly 200 parchments dating to the 12th century.
In 1986 it became a co-cathedral of the Archdiocese of Brindisi-Ostuni, and in 2011 was granted the status of a minor basilica.References:
The Odeon of Herodes Atticus is a stone theatre structure located on the southwest slope of the Acropolis of Athens. It was built in 161 AD by the Athenian magnate Herodes Atticus in memory of his wife, Aspasia Annia Regilla. It was originally a steep-sloped theater with a three-story stone front wall and a wooden roof made of expensive cedar of Lebanon timber. It was used as a venue for music concerts with a capacity of 5,000. It lasted intact until it was destroyed and left in ruins by the Heruli in 267 AD.
The audience stands and the orchestra (stage) were restored using Pentelic marble in the 1950s. Since then it has been the main venue of the Athens Festival, which runs from May through October each year, featuring a variety of acclaimed Greek as well as International performances.