Marina of Novaglie

Marina of Novaglie, or simply Novaglie is a seaside resort of Alessano. The locality was inhabited from ancient times as evidenced by numerous caves used to Laure Basilian in the Middle Ages and a shelter for fishermen in below. The origins of the name are uncertain: è perhaps datable to the land reclamation in the XI century included the area by calling "new" wooded areas and stony making them habitable. The existence of a number of springs of fresh water made Novaglie one locality strategic for the Saracen pirates who went to refuel. Since the antiquity the coast of Novaglie was used as a point for the mooring of boats and ships, as evidenced by the toponym Porto Vecchio given to the stretch of coast più to the north-east. Novaglie hosts two ancient laure basilian in the area of the new harbor, dug into the rock from two Natural caves; used in time as a shelter for boats, we can discern in them writing stroke graffito scratched. There is also a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows dating back to the XX century, forming part of a private residence. The main caves of costa novagliese, from north to south there are the following:

• Blue Cave. Called like that for the characteristic staining of waters.
• Devil's Cave. Located near the coast in the wide gulf of Novaglie, in front of the cliff traditionally called Punta Rossa. This cave is very dark (it's directed against the sun) and his room ends in a tiny swallow hole, probably in ancient times it was considered to be a portal for the underworld, from which the name. Above this cave are the ruins of the watchtower, later collapsed.
• Old Port Cave. A small cave with a grassy shelf above the main chamber.
• Cipolliane Caves. A complex of two caves from the particular characteristic of having two rooms, one on the level of the sea and the other to it immediately superposed thereon. Individually, they are called The Crib (its upper room evokes the cave of a crib) and Elephant Cave (due to a rocky formation similar to an elephant). The latter is very important for the tempering process at its interior a pebble engraved by human hand dating back to the Palaeolithic and exposed to the Maglie Paleontological Civic Museum.

From 2013 the ancient sheep track that from Novaglie led to Gagliano del Capo skirting the two caves has been managed and opened to the public as trail; through it it's possibile to access to the two upper chambers of Cipolliane.