Alberobello
Small town Alberobello is tucked away in southern Italy. The name literally means "beautiful tree". What wins the popularity of this Italian region with unique structures, known as Trulli.
Trulli are unique prehistoric limestone buildings that have survived intact to this day. Itself Alberobello extends the 2 hills, separated by a watercourse.
To the east lies the new town with modern buildings and the west are scattered Trulli buildings, divided into 2 main parts - Monti and Aia Piccola. Trulli's been declared a national monument of Italy as part of the world historical and cultural heritage since 1996.
In both areas Alberobello which consist almost entirely of Trulli contain over a thousand of these unique limestone homes. Trulli's can be seen in other parts of the Italian region of Apulia - urban Locorotondo, Fasano, Cisternino, Martina Franca and Ceglie Messapica. In essence Trulli are remarkable examples of drywall.
All are made solely by the limestone and other stones, with absolutely no cement or other material to weld them. The first Trulli were built in 16 century when local farmers were forced to settle here and to cultivate land.
Perhaps the most remarkable part of the structure of Trulli's is their roof. At first glance it seems quite strange with its conical shape. It was built from 2 layers, the inner layer is made of large pieces of limestone, and the outer is crafted from limestone slabs. It aims to eliminate water.
The roof of one Trulli, in most cases consists of several cones. Once white, the roofs are now black, because the plates are very dark with sunlight. A cone roof usually has a symbol with religious or other significance, like a star, heart, crescent, Cross and others. On top of the roof is usually an ornament that also carries some symbolism.
The walls of Trulli's are quite thick (over 1 meter) in order inside the limestone house to be warm in winter and cool in summer weather. In most cases Trulli have a central room, with additional facilities like niches. Most of Trulli have a room below each cone roof.
May theories about the construction of Trulli's are present. One of them says that the incredibly high taxes in the past, the people of Apulia built structures without cement and other binders, because it serves large parts of the house can quickly be dismantled. It is alleged that one Trulli can literally be turned into a pile of stones for about an hour. According to another version Trulli's were built because the principle of construction is simple, and limestone in the region was in abundance.
Although Trulli, are under the auspices of UNESCO, there are quite a few foreign owners in Trulli Alberobello. Bought Trulli is quite expensive, with the restoration of such a structure is quite complicated. Today some of Trulli's been turned into small hotels, where tourists can stay and enjoy the feeling of sleeping in a small and cozy Trulli.
