The palace, already documented by the early 16th century, was at the centre of several events, which determined the balance of local power between the 16th and the 18th centuries. Owned by the Genoese banker Heronimo Centurione in the 1500s, it passed in 1606 to Michele Vaaz, a Portuguese Jew, who gave the name San Michele to the town, while in 1675 it was owned by Baron Antonio De Ponte. The Caracciolo dukes took possession in 1797 and commissioned restoration work from the architect Amenduni in the mid-19th century, when the east facade was rebuilt, covered with ashlars, the openings on the ground floor opened and the three windows of the first floor transformed into neo-Gothic double lancet windows. The family owned the castle until a few years ago when they gave it to the Municipality. Since 1974 the castle has been the seat of the Museo della Civiltà Contadina Dino Bianco.
Apulia Film Commission
Cineporti di Puglia/Bari — c/o Fiera del Levante - Lungomare Starita 1 — 70132 Bari
Phone: +39 080 9752900
Fax: +39 080 9147464
Email: email@apuliafilmcommission.it
