Senise is an Italian municipality in the province of Power, which is 121 km away. Like other towns in Basilicata, this one is spread out over a range of elevations, specifically between 171 and 651 metres above sea level, with the town centre situated halfway up at around 335 metres.
History
Tradition placed Senise where the Serraponto meets the Sinni, but, due to malaria, it was rebuilt where it stands today. In fact, the place name – which is thought to mean “place of the Sinni” and not “colony of Siena” – would seem to confirm this.
The locals love to tell the story of a Sienese knight who, whilst travelling towards the Crusades, founded the town. And since Siena – founded by Senio and Ascanio, the sons of Remus – had the nursing she-wolf as its emblem, Senise chose the same. However, historical records show that the town predates the Crusades: it was founded during the Roman Imperial period, as also demonstrated by the ruins of a villa in the San Filippo area.
Even the Lombards They settled there, as evidenced by the discovery of the Senise gold artefacts, now housed in the National Museum of Naples.
The coat of arms mentioned above can be seen in a census book dating from 1753 (the general land register of the Terra di Senise in Basilicata): this important document is currently held in the Municipal Archives.
The founding of the present-day town of Senise is attributed to the Norman period when a primitive one was built castle, part of the county of Chiaromonte, which was part of a complex defence system of the valley below, and it was precisely around this that the first settlement was established.
The convent and the Church of St Francis (1270) were built after the arrival of the Angioini, when, moreover, the castle was moved to a higher position. The town therefore expanded, spreading across the hill to triangular shape, Bordered downstream by the Serrapotamo stream and flanked on either side by two deep valleys, forming a natural defence. Within this triangle, which was later enclosed by a wall, the convent (long the religious and cultural centre of the community) and the churches were built.
From the mid-16th century to the end of the 19th century, the layout of Senise remained virtually unchanged, confined within its walls and developing within its own boundaries: from the 18th century onwards, this involved the demolition and rebuilding of existing structures or the merging of buildings to create the stately mansions of the agrarian bourgeoisie that had risen from the ashes of feudal privileges.
The 19th and part of the 20th centuries saw the townscape characterised by the castle and the convent (symbols of a secular and religious power now in decline), and by numerous stately buildings flanked by smaller dwellings linked to them, as if to bear witness to the socio-economic hierarchical relationships within the town’s community. This was also reflected in the agricultural world: on the one hand, the farmhouses, which until a few decades ago remained the foundation of the socio-economic organisation, and, on the other hand, a rudimentary architecture: single-storey buildings constructed from blocks of clay and straw, which served as daily shelters for farm labourers and were mainly found in areas formerly owned by the state that had subsequently been divided into plots.
It can therefore be said that, up until the early 20th century, the urban centre of Senise was the result of centuries of development, characterised by a detailed, compact fabric rich in distinctive architectural styles, building techniques and widespread architectural features, some of which are still evident within what we now refer to as the historic centre.
Monuments and places of interest
First and foremost, the historic centre born on the slopes of a medieval castle, which in turn lies on the slopes of the hill, consisting of narrow streets and medieval buildings which, to the visitor, become a veritable labyrinth.
I aristocratic palaces with distinctive stone portals:
- Crocco Palace
- Donnaperna Palace
- Palazzo Sole
- Marcone Palace
- Barletta Palace
The entire historic centre remains virtually unchanged, partly due to its small population; it is in summer that it comes to life again, as residents who work elsewhere return for their holidays or to visit their families.
Of particular interest is the Church of St Francis, built in 1200, attached to a Franciscan friary which later became the town hall; frescoes depicting the life of St Francis are still visible).
The exterior, clad in exposed local stone, is characterised by a Gothic pointed arch portal, constructed from stone blocks worked and carved with decorative motifs; the interior, characterised by 17th-century stucco work and a wooden coffered ceiling, houses medieval frescoes, funerary plaques and, in the chancel, a polyptych created by the painter Simone da Firenze in the 14th century and a wooden choir stall carved with decorative motifs.
Also in the town centre is the the house in Sant’Andrea Avellino, which currently houses the ethnographic museum.
Natural areas
Monte Cotugno Dam: the reservoir is the largest earth-filled reservoir in Europe, and rowing competitions are often held there.
Senise is surrounded by olive groves and natural areas teeming with local flora and fauna.
