The Crib in the heart of the Lecce Amphitheatre

The rural nativity scene in the heart of Lecce's Roman Amphitheatre, recently reopened to the public, is the most significant event of the Apulian Christmas season. The religious and rural setting composed of huts with a roof of marsh canes, a citrus grove, a vineyard and a real olive grove, together with numerous plants of opuntia, agave, medlar trees, clusters of winter tomatoes and other vegetables, can be enjoyed both from above and by entering this playful structure that hosted the fights between gladiators and ferocious beasts in front of an audience that could reach up to 14,000. Recent restorations allow one to admire at close quarters the rhapsodic succession of arches and pillars that amazed Cosimo De Giorgi and other archaeologists, who unearthed a third of the amphitheatre at the dawn of the 20th century. Now this marvellous architecture dating back to the Augustan age is also accessible to people with disabilities, who are given the opportunity to view the 18th-century palaces and churches, the rationalist and Renaissance buildings from below, as well as this beautifully crafted nativity scene that brings the countryside and vegetation typical of an unfortunately disappearing Salento to the city.