Starting with the ceramics of Grottaglie, in the province of Taranto, whose old part is dedicated to artisan workshops, where the craft is passed down from father to son.
To buy, besides the unglazed terracotta oil jars, the ciarle (jars with lids and handles typical of Apulia); the albarelli (the beautiful pharmacy jars, with intense blue decorations); the holy water fonts which, in the past, were placed next to the bridal bed on the bride’s side; the soup tureens with beautiful eighteenth-century shapes and much more. Among the best-known workshops are those of Gaetano Fasano, on via Caravaggio, and Domenico Caretta, on via Crispi.
Lecce is, instead, the land of papier-mâché masters who, with this very humble material, whose work dates back to the seventeenth century, create wonderful things: masks, nativity figurines, sacred and profane subjects. On via Vittorio Emanuele, among many, there is the workshop of Claudio Riso, where it is possible to follow the various stages of the work.
And, next to the beautiful church of the Gesù, the Permanent Exhibition Market of Typical Salento Handicrafts. Again, Salento is the land of fantastic artisan weaving, like that of the Giaquinto family in Otranto, near the castle, and in Santa Maria di Leuca, where this family has been passing down for three generations the ancient weaving technique with wooden “shuttle” looms, using top-quality yarns such as linen, silk, wool, hemp, and perlé cotton. The result is tablecloths, sheets, very refined towels, embellished with hand-knotted fringes and crochet borders.
