Introduction to Trulli dome houses: "Trullo" (plural trulli) is translated as "domestic stone house" in Italian. This is a type of house with walls painted white with lime and a roof made of gray flat stones. Blocks are piled into a strange cone-shaped building, with a marble ball on top of the cone. Most of the roofs are painted with words and pictures. The most interesting theory about the origin of Trulli architecture is that in the 17th century, residents fought with the government in order to "save taxes." Since they had to start paying house tax after the house was built, residents would tear down the roof or knock it down when the officials came to visit. A wall and a pile of rubble indicate that the house is not yet completed, so no taxes are payable.
Trulli were once widely distributed in Puglia, southeastern Italy. Today, there are more than 10,000 stone-roofed houses, mainly in Alberobello and Putignano. Putignano and Martina Franca, among which Alberobello is the most concentrated.