The castle of Policoro, also known as del Barone Berlingieri in memory of the last noble lineage that owned it, dates back to the 8th century and overlooks the picturesque Ionian coast. On the eastern tip of the ancient Greek colonies of Siris and Herakleia, it is thought to have been erected by Basilian monks as a monastery and agricultural center, later becoming, around 1791, a noble farmhouse owned by Princess Grimaldi Serra Gerace. In 1893 it passed to Baron Berlingieri of Crotone.
The main facade still has inscriptions on the lintels of the windows on the ground floor, which are essential for the historical reconstruction of the building. The eighteenth-century portal, surmounted by the coat of arms of the Berlingieri family, leads to a rectangular inner courtyard, from which there is access to the service rooms on the ground floor, the basement and the monumental staircase leading to the upper floors.
Today, the Palazzo Baronale di Policoro is protected and enhanced by the FAI – Fondo per l’Ambiente Italiano, which has included it among the places of historical and cultural interest to be preserved and made known. The FAI promotes its visit and historical study through events and initiatives, allowing visitors to discover not only the beauty of its structures and decorations, but also the thousand-year history of the area in which it stands, among the ancient remains of Siris and Heraclea.
Visiting hours
- Saturday: 09:00 – 13:00 / 15:30 – 17:30 (last entry at 16:30)
Guided tours every 30 minutes, with groups of maximum 25 people.Sunday: 10:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (last entrance at 12:00 p.m.)
Guided tours every 30 minutes, with groups of maximum 25 people.
Accessibility and how to visit
The castle, which is privately owned, houses a number of professional and tourist accommodation activities. For this reason, only the inner courtyard with surrounding open rooms is accessible. The visit will continue outside to complete the historical narrative, offering a chance to admire the majesty of the monument, the landscape setting and the nearby Chapel of Our Lady of the Bridge.
