The largest, descending to a depth of 185 meters, is the Puro delle Mele (Puro of the Apples). The smallest reaches 80 meters, is the only one that can be reached via a path of great attractiveness due to the beauty of the nature encountered there.
Between them there are twelve others, of different width and depth, all surrounded by flourishing vegetation. The local people have always called them "pure", a term that evokes pyr, or fire in Greek. Perhaps because it was once thought that those depressions with a circular and fairly regular shape could be traced back to as many volcanic craters. But there has never been any volcanic activity on Pugliano, which rises between Saint Salvatore Telesino, Telese and Castelvenere.
A definition such as mountain does not seem appropriate for Pugliano, given its height of just over 200 meters. However, it is not just any hill, on the contrary its characteristics make it special, from a geological point of view and, consequently, from a naturalistic point of view too. Nothing to do with volcanic phenomena, the "puri" are just sinkholes, daughters of the karst that characterizes Puglia together with the entire territory surrounding it. It is the continuous action of the water that the high ground holds abundantly in its belly to corrode the limestone and to create cavities that, over time, undergo accentuated and accelerated sinking by seismic phenomena. Some of the present "puri", for example, were highlighted after the earthquake of 1815.
Despite its instability, Pugliano has been inhabited since the most remote times. The remains of a hut-sheepfold belong to the Paleolithic age, but sections of the Samnite walls of Telesia are still noted for their prominence. The spectacle that spring reserves is splendid, when the white limestone boulders are covered with cyclamen.
Configuring itself as an extension of Mount Acero, the hill of Pugliano is part of the massif Matese , from which the waters feeding rivers, streams and mineral springs of the Telesina Valley come from. Including the sulphureous waters of Telese, which has its thermal citadel right at the foot of the Pugliano.
Due to its naturalistic value, the hill is an ideal destination for trekking lovers, thanks to the paths going through the vegetation that covers it. Of particular value is the extensive holm oak wood (Quercus ilex), but downy oaks (Quercus pubescens), Turkey oaks (Quercus cerris), manna ash (Fraxinus ornus) and, in the undergrowth, especially laurel trees (Laurus nobilis) are also very common.
