L’Abbazia was founded at the end of the 12th century by Tancredi d’Altavilla, Count of Lecce. Legend has it that the Madonna appeared to Tancredi in this place, between the antlers of a deer, from which the name (Cerrate or Cervate) comes.
The location was an important religious and cultural center until the sixteenth century, later transformed into a farmhouse. The area on which the Abbey of Cerrate stands was acquired by the province of Lecce in 1965, and was destined to house the museum and the center for research and studies of folklore and popular Salentine traditions.
