A tour of the most interesting historic site in the centre of the city
Taranto is located in the of South of Italy, in Apulia. It is 15 metres above sea level.
Latitude North : 40° - 28’ – 5.
Longitude East (Rome) 4° - 16’ – 0.
Longitude East (Greenwich) 1° - 9’ – 01.
Magnetic declination: 4° - 32’W.
Taranto is bordered by the province of Bari (to the north), the province of Brindisi (to the east), the Ionian Sea (south) and the Lucanian region (to the west). Its Gulf is formed by the east coast of Calabria, the southern coast of Lucania and the west coast of the
Salento peninsula. The city occupies an area of about 310.2 square kilometres.
Taranto is at the meeting point of two seas: Mar Piccolo and Mar Grande, creating its principal characteristic. Panoramic views of its many islands are framed naturally by the mountains of Calabria.
The city is divided by a navigable channel (excavated in 1883) which separates the old city from the new, whose birth and development began in the middle of the 19th century.
A swivel bridge connects the two cities and opens (by turning) to allow ships to pass through the channel. It symbolises the city and represents the synthesis and communication between old and new Taranto. The construction of the bridge follows techniques employed by Eng. Eiffel for the Paris tower. The bridge is unique in the world.
