At the edge of Galatina, along a quiet country lane, lies a place unlike any other. It does not reveal itself at once, but gradually.

At first, only a dome emerges from the ground, as if suspended above the surrounding landscape. Then, as you draw closer, a large quadrangular hollow carved into the rock comes into view – evidence of a site that has been inhabited, lived in, and prayed within for centuries.

At its heart stands Santa Maria della Porta, a subterranean church-crypt immersed in the stillness of Pisanello – once an ancient Byzantine settlement, now lost to time.

This is a place where archeology, rural architecture, Basilian heritage,and local traditions converge, layered with an unexpected 19th-century presence. Today, it is emerging once again through a major restoration project funded by the PNRR.

Crossing its threshold feels like stepping through time: a descending path carved into the rock, an underground cloister, mosaics resurfacing from the earth, a nymphaeum adorned with marine shells, and finally a circular chapel illuminated by a painted starry sky.

Santa Maria della Porta is not simply a place: it is a story that continues to resurface.