Piazza Sant'Oronzo and the Roman amphitheatre

In 1901 workmen digging foundations in Lecce's main square found a Roman amphitheatre underneath it. About half of it has been excavated and left open, so the modern square now has a two-thousand-year-old oval sunk into one side, with the tiers of seating visible from street level.

That level change is what makes the square work photographically. From the railing above you can shoot down into the arena with the curved rows as a graphic background; from inside the excavation, the surrounding buildings rise above the stone tiers. Across the square, the column of Sant'Oronzo, brought here from the end of the Appian Way at Brindisi, gives a strong vertical, and the whole space is pedestrian, so groups can spread out.

It is the main square, so it is lively rather than serene — cafes, the evening passeggiata, and a constant crossing of people. The excavation itself is fenced and normally viewed from above rather than entered; access to the arena floor is limited and worth checking. Early morning gives an empty square with low light along the paving, and it is level throughout with no steps except into the excavation.