La grotta di San Cristoforo a Torre dell'Orso. Lo scavo e i materiali ceramici medievali

Sailors chose the bay of Torre dell'Orso, along with the cave of San Cristoforo (St. Christopher) as a landing place and somewhere to take shelter following frequent crossings of the Strait of Otranto from the 6th century B.C. to the late Middle Ages, leaving significant material traces of their presence. This work considers the results of the archaeological survey and the study of ceramics found particularly inside the cave, between 1981 and 1983. Most of the artefacts found here can be dated back to the 12th and 13th centuries, thanks to the recording of pots and common household pottery that testify to a mostly domestic use of the cave. Less frequent is the more sought-after and costly tableware such as glazed ceramics, proto-maiolica, pottery with the graffito decoration of oriental import, and late glazed items, which were mostly found in the flat area just outside the entrance to the cave. These finds place the site in an interesting circulation of people and objects between the Adriatic and the East. The renewed interest in this area prompts further reflection on the settlement dynamics of this stretch of the coast and the complex and often treacherous routes used to cross the Strait of Otranto.