| Situated in farmland a short distance from the Via Traiana, the rock-cut settlement of San Biagio lies near the traditional farmhouse known as Masseria Jannuzzo about 7 km from San Vito dei Normanni and 11 km from Brindisi. At the centre of a series of caves excavated along the course of the Canale Reale is the crypt dedicated to San Biagio, a miracle-working saint venerated by the rural population. The crypt has the typical features of local rock-cut structures, with a side entrance leading into a broad rectangular space about 12.65 by 4.80 m, with an average height of about 2.60 m. The nàos and bema were probably once divided by a stone iconostasis, no longer present. Near the entrance, on the vault is a Greek inscription bearing the names Matthew (the financier), Daniel (perhaps the architect), and Martin (perhaps the painter of the cycle of paintings). Another Greek epigraph, which cites an abbot named Benedict, bears the probable date of the building's consecration, October the 8th 1196. Along the walls are numerous frescoes of eastern saints – San Biagio, San Nicola and Sant’Andrea – and Latin saints. The anti-Muslim ethos, pervasive in a period which saw the passage through the area of crusaders heading for the Orient, is reflected in the representations of San Giorgio, San Demetrio, San Giacomo and San Giovanni. The paintings also include a cycle dedicated to Christ, making this church somewhat unique in the context of rock-cut churches in the Salento. The Magi on horseback seen in the grandiose Byzantine Nativity on the eastern wall recall archetypes of the faithful in transit towards the Holy Land. |