Garden palazzo near Otranto

At its heart lies a walled Mediterranean garden, green and quiet, planted with citrus, cactus and rosemary among old dry-stone terraces. A long pool set in pale stone runs beneath the shade of the trees, with loungers along its edge, and a pergola shelters a table laid for fourteen. Shaded corners and stone-paved courtyards catch the light from morning to evening, private places to read, eat and rest.

Indoors, the house balances the atmosphere of a centuries-old building with the comforts of a modern one. A vaulted kitchen and dining room open to the courtyard, there is a generous living room with a carved stone fireplace, and a fine collection of works of art runs throughout. Every space is luminous and generous, made for long lunches and easy gatherings that spill between house and garden.