The Calderina tower is part of the defence system built by the Spaniard during the 16th century in order to control and protect all the coasts of the reign and to alert the interland.
Among 1569 and 1573 sixteen towers were built by Viceroy Don Pedro Afàn de Ribera in the land from Bari to Ofanto and Monopoli. Along the coast of the municipality of Molfetta, Calderina Tower is a proof of this defensive system. Situated in a strategic place visually connected with Castel del Monte, the tower permitted the defence of Cala San Giacomo, the medieval landing of Molfetta. The tower tooks its name from Salvatore Calderini, the architect who designed the structure
Calderina Tower stands close to the seashore on the north area of the city of Molfetta. It was built on a small promontory with a pyramidal trunk shape and a square plan. Three machicolations were built on each side on the top of the structure characterized by a protruding parapet. A stone brick stair is the unique access to the tower. The interior consists of one space lightened by two windows, one facing East, one facing West. The structure was built according to the “typical squared shape” used by the Reign, the favourite constructive shape by Sazaar after 1568.
The tower is situated in the centre of an avifauna protected area. In the oasis there are two “lama”, local toponym that denotes a wide furrow in the ground typical of the apulian landscape (Lama di Macina and Lama dell’Aglio). Inside the two lama, the typical terracing has been realized with drystone walls where a rich vegetation grows spontaneously. In that part of the coast it is possible to see the natural phenomenon of pebble beaches.
The coastal belt on which the tower is situated is included in the integrated redevelopment project of the area between Cala San Giacomo and Torre Calderina. The project will be part of the wider scenario of the actions of the Integrated Program for the protection, recovery and enhancement of the Bisceglie-Molfetta coastal area, promoted by Legambiente Puglia. The design activity was conceived as a first piece of a mosaic of operations which, coordinated with each other, will contribute to the incisive redevelopment of this coastal area.
