Church of St. John the Baptist

The Church of St. John the Baptist is a religious building located in the square of the same name. It was built starting in 1230 on an old church called "Santa Maria Nuova" and completed in 1233.

During the Otranto war in 1480, it was abandoned but reopened for worship in 1695 and dedicated to St. John the Baptist.

The church underwent various modifications over the centuries and features Romanesque architecture with influences from various styles such as Arabic in the portals, Gothic in the arches, and Greek in the cross-shaped plan with equal arms.

The interior of the Church of St. John the Baptist has three aisles, eight pillars decorated with floral and animal motifs, a barrel vault in the central nave, and cross vaults in the side aisles.

The medieval chapels contain frescoes from the 16th century and wooden statues. In the chapel on the altar, there is an 18th-century canvas by Vito Antonio Conversi.