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Canosa is a town in the province of BAT (Barletta, Andria and Trani). It has about 32,000 inhabitants, it sits on the right bank of the Ofanto River and is nearly twenty kilometres from the Adriatic Sea, 105 meters above sea level.

Canosa is considered one of the main archaeological centres in Puglia, and is one of the oldest uninterruptedlyninhabited cities in Italy. A number of important vases and other archaeological finds are located in local museums and private collections.
The city is built on a mostly sandy and clay surface that covers a limestone layer ("calcareniti of Gravina") which in turn constitutes the typical white-yellowish tuff that is easily crumbly. This morphological feature allowed the underground construction of artificial grottoes (used in the XIX century as cellars), and the creation of a Hypogeum. The tuff derived from the excavations has gone towards the construction of buildings on the surface.

There are many hypotheses advanced to explain the origins of the name Canosa. The first hypothesis sees the origin in the worship of Aphrodite in the Daunia area. According to this hypothesis, Canusium derives from canis (dog), an animal associated with the Greek Goddess Aphrodite. Another theory provides a derivation from the Greek word that means basket or wicker basket, for the presence of large wicker growing naturally along the banks of the Ofanto River. A third possibility explains that the name derives from the Hebrew Chanuth (Tavern), which later became the word Chanush. Further research sees a direct correlation between the Latin name Canusium and Etruscan canzna. This hypothesis is based on the Etruscan presence in Lazio before the Roman conquest and the lively trade along the Etruscan Ofanto valley. This is supported by the conspicuous presence of Etruscan products made with metal techniques and Amber (kept at the British Museum in London) which have the stylistic pattern common to the Etruscan.

The city’s coat of arms has a similar shield to that of the Kingdom of Naples and identical to that of the Empire of Constantinople. It is indeed a union of these two families, the Anjou and the Couternay, due to marriage in 1313 between Philip of Anjou, the Prince of Taranto and Catherine de Valois Courtenay Empress of Constantinople. On the left side there is the shield that represents Philip of Anjou: a blue background dotted with golden lilies and a silver band; on the right side there is the coat of arms of Courtenay: a red background with a central cross and four crossed roundels, each accompanied by four golden crosses.

Local inhabitants are referred to as canosini.

HISTORY
According to the tradition, Canosa, then called Canusium, was founded by the Homeric hero Diomedes. Historically, it was one of the main centres of the Dauni, in an area where human presence dates back from the 7th millennium BC. The first indigenous settlements (consisting of Dauni, northern branch of the Japigii people) established on a strip of...

land called the Campi Diomedei, which dates back to the Neolithic era (6000-3000 BC).
Over the centuries, Canosa became an important commercial centre for craftsman (especially ceramics and pottery). With the development of Magna Graecia, the centre was influenced by the Hellenistic culture. In 318 BC Canosa becomes an ally of Rome, welcoming the Romans after the famous defeat of Hannibal in 216 BC at Cannae, a small village near the Ofanto. In 88 BC became a municipium and underwent changes typical in the Roman culture. A little later the emperor Antoninus Pius elevated the centre to capital of the Provincia Apuliae et Calabriae.

Towards the end of the III century it became the fourth seat of one of the largest dioceses in Puglia, and reached its greatest significance with the Bishopric of Saint Sabino (from 514 to 566). Due to the presence of an Episcopal district with places of artistic values such as civil architecture, the city earned the nickname "city of bishops". Under the Lombards, it was the seat of the Gastaldate (an administration centre ruled by a royal lord), and in the following centuries suffered several Saracen attacks.
Under the Normans (XI-XII centuries) Canosa recovered some importance, in particular due to Prince Bohemund I of Antioch.

As the imperial age went into decline until the XVIII century, Canosa was struck by many earthquakes (1361, 1456, 1627, and 1659), it was sacked several time (in particular, by Taranto in 1451 and by the French troops of Napoleon in 1803) and suffered the loss of the bishopric. Canosa became then a fief, managed by the Orsini del Balzo family, the Grimaldi of Monaco, the de Gemmis barons of Castelfoce, the Affaitati of Barletta, and the Capece Minutolo of Naples.

After the wars of independence and the disastrous earthquake in 1851, Canosa remained predominantly a bourgeois country. Virtually unscathed by the World War I, the town suffered the effects of the first Irpinia earthquake in 1930.
On 6 November 1943, shortly after the armistice, the country was bombed .
On 17 September 1962, by decree of the President, Canosa was awarded the title of City for its historical traditions and the merits acquired by the community.
Currently Canosa is a centre based mainly on agriculture, developing archaeological tourism, trades and handicrafts manufacturing.

MONUMENTS AND SIGHTS OF INTERESTS
• San Sabino’s Cathedral
• Boemondo Mausoleum
• Sant'Antonio di Padova’s Church
• Santa Caterina’s Church
• Santi Francesco e Biagio’s Church
• Santi Lucia e Teodoro’s Church also called Santissimo Purgatorio’s Church
• SS. Madonna dell'Assunta’s Church
• SS. Madonna di Costantinopoli’s Church
• SS. Maria Immacolata’s Church
• SS. Maria del Carmelo o Carmine’s Church
• SS. Maria del Rosario or Rosale’s Church
• SS. Passione di Gesù Cristo’s Church
• SS. Gesù Liberatore’s Church
• SS. Gesù, Giuseppe e Maria’s Church
• San Giovanni Battista’s Church
• Santa Teresa del Bambin Gesù’s Church
• Palaces
• Masserie (Farmhouses)
• The...

castle
• Loconia District
• Hypogeous and underground tombs (archaeological site)
• Ancient Temples and Churches
• San Leucio Basilica
• San Pietro Basilica
• San Giovanni Baptistery
• Santa Maria Basilica
• Giove Toro Temple
• Lomuscio Thermal Bath
• Ferrara Thermal Bath