Matera is somewhere you go to get lost around every corner (and Judy and I did just that!)  Nicknamed “the stone city”, Matera has been quite literally dug out of the rock, and it’s a sight we will not soon forget. It is like a human rabbit warren with layers, stairways, and corridors everywhere. Set on the slope of a rocky ravine, the landscape is dominated by cave dwellings, zigzagged staircases, and early churches that hold some incredible frescoes inside. It is well-known for its rupestrian (just learned that new word!) churches, carved into the rock and covered inside with frescoes. 

A bit of History:  Matera, the town once known as “the shame of Italy”, has since become a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1993) and one of Europe’s two Capitals of Culture (2019). This is the third oldest continuously inhabited city in the world (since the 10th millennium BC!), and an ancient maze that resembles a cubist painting. First occupied in the Paleolithic Age, the myriad of natural caves were gradually burrowed deeper and expanded into living spaces by peasants, artisans, and hermit monks throughout the classical and medieval eras.

The “shame years”:   In 1951, Matera was exposed and brought out of obscurity by the memoirs of Carlo Levi.  He wrote, “In these dark holes I saw a few pieces of miserable furniture, beds, and some ragged clothes hanging up to dry. On the floor lay dogs, sheep, goats, and pigs… Children appeared from everywhere, in the dust and heat, stark naked or in rags, eyelids red and swollen… and with the wizened faces of old men, yellow and worn with malaria, their bodies reduced by starvation to skeletons… I have never in all my life seen such a picture of poverty.”

As a result, the Italian government passed a law in the 1950s forcing all residents into modern buildings, which today form the ‘new Matera’. The entire population (@16,000 people, mostly peasants, and farmers) was relocated by the Italian government to new housing projects, leaving it an empty shell for more than 25 years.

A new beginning:  Today, it is a place to stroll, marvel at the architecture, and gain a sense of all that is wonderful about southern Italy.  Hotel guests are clamoring to live like troglodytes (another new word!) In 1993, UNESCO called it “the most outstanding, intact example of a troglodyte settlement in the Mediterranean region, perfectly adapted to its terrain and ecosystem.”

Today, around 3,000 people live in the Sassi and about half of the dwellings are occupied. Sassi refers to the two neighborhoods (Sasso Caveoso and Sasso Barisano) of stone dwellings in the ancient town, separated by Civita.  Staying in one of the “Sassi’s” cave hotels has become one of Europe’s most exotic new experiences and we did just that!    Many Christian-themed movies have been filmed in Matera, like Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of Christ”, or  “The Gospel According to St. Matthew”, the opening shot in the latest James Bond movie, “No Time to Die” and the newest remake of “Ben Hur.”

Guided Walk of Matera

The city is really a unique blend of history, culture, and breathtaking vistas, a  real feeling of stepping ‘back in time’. 

Along with our Trip Guide Silvio, a Local Guide named Anna Maria, joined us to provide a personalized tour of Matera.  Although we explored a lot yesterday, this walk did not duplicate anything! 

Paleolithic Caves

From the two Sassis of Matera, we could look across the ravine and see a hill punctuated with small caves; these are actually the Paleolithic caves that make Matera’s story so unique. (7,000 years ago! ). Matera’s tuff rock is a type of porous limestone that holds significant historical and geological importance. Also known as tufa, it is a sedimentary rock formed of compacted volcanic ash, pumice, and other volcanic fragments. The particles settle and accumulate over time, eventually compacting and hardening into porous rock.

Matera’s tuff rock has a distinctive beige-to-golden color, and its porous nature gives it unique properties. The porosity allows for good thermal insulation, making it suitable for constructing cave dwellings. The caves in Matera provided shelter for human habitation for thousands of years.  Unfortunately, we did not have enough time in Matera, or probably enough youthfulness to walk across the ravine to explore them further! 

Local Craftsmen:  An important part of the regional economy and cultural heritage are the artisans and we stopped by for a little lesson with this artist.  He creates little whistles, dolls, and carvings….all made of terracotta (the traditional clay).

The whistles made in Matera are called “cucù,” the dialect word for the cuckoo bird, whose sound is recreated by breathing into the whistle.  Recognized worldwide as Matera’s symbol, the whistles usually have the shape of a rooster or a dove.  To help drive out evil spirits, people placed whistles inside the house, close to the fireplace and the clothes of children not yet baptized.

The tuff rock of Matera is notable for its ability to be easily excavated and shaped. It can be carved into intricate architectural details, such as facades, arches, and staircases. The local craftsmen in Matera also create beautiful buildings and structures that blend with the natural landscape. He gives us a demo of his carving in the video below.

Santa Maria de Idris 

Matera has more than 150 chiese rupestre (churches literally chiseled into rock or built into caves). They are small, labyrinthine, and covered with ancient frescoes…..truly a unique feature of Southern Italy. One we visited was Santa Maria de Idris, located at the top of a large limestone cliff.  An undeniable highlight of Santa Maria de Idris is its magnificent vista. We wandered through narrow streets to climb a winding staircase where we were rewarded with breathtaking panoramic views of Matera.

This church is completely carved into the rock and consists of a single room decorated with some once-fine frescoes( that have deteriorated with time and neglect.)  Luckily, some of the frescoes were removed and restored and kept at another location.

On the church’s altar is a fresco depicting the Madonna and Child (dating from the 17th century). There are also frescoes depicting St. John the Baptist, St. Nicholas in episcopal robes, and more.  Understandable, but unfortunate was the fact that we could not take pictures on the inside.  This picture, from Google, was obviously taken by someone whose camera had permission!

Cave Houses

As we were walking the streets, our guide pointed out to us that the streets were actually the ‘roof’ of the cave house below!  To see what a real peasant dwelling was like before the “Sassi” of Matera was abandoned, we visited a typical cave dwelling with furniture and tools of the time.

Our tour, with the original furnishings and objects in the house, offered insight into the peasant lifestyle in the Sassi district back in the 1950s. The interior is a museum of rupestrian peasant culture: the kitchen, the loom, the typical terracotta dish, from which everyone ate, the brazier, the tub for washing clothes, and the bread stamp, which allowed people to recognize their personal loaf after it was baked in the communal oven.

The bed, with its ½ wool and ½ corn-leaf filled mattress, would be flipped over depending on the time of the year. The bed was very high off the floor in order to be as far away as possible from the dampness of the floor. Behind the bed, is a stable for the cow, mule, or horse.

Casa Noha

Casa Noha is a historical house to immerse visitors in the town’s history through a multimedia project. Funded by two local families whose ancestors used to live on the premises, Casa Noha provided a 25-minute multimedia exhibit relating to the often upsetting history of the city.  After our experiences with the tour guides, and our own meandering around the city, the film, The Invisible Sassi: An Extraordinary Journey through the History of Matera, provided an incredible visual to put the pieces together and better understand the ancient city and its people.

Palombaro Lungo

In Matera, what lies beneath is interesting.  We visited Palombaro Lungo, located under Piazza Vittorio Veneto, Matera’s main square. Palambaro derives from the name given to the men who coated the pipes.  It is a massive 16th-century water cistern (5 million liters of water, 16 meters deep, 50 meters in length.) Although it looked pretty simple as we followed the metal walkways down and through it, it is supposedly a true masterpiece of hydraulic engineering and architecture and the reason UNESCO selected it as a heritage site. It was made from previously existing caves (wine cellars, snow houses, tanneries, etc.) combined together to become a bigger cave.

The rocky walls were covered with a type of plaster made from tiles and pottery that were ground into powder. People used to withdraw water using aluminum buckets through a well.   In 1927, when an aqueduct was built, this cistern was no longer necessary, so it was abandoned and closed. 

It was rediscovered in 1991 and explored by scuba divers (chambers 50 feet deep and 240 feet long.) It has now been brought back to life for tourists to see where the rainwater and spring waters were collected in the past….part of a network of channels and cisterns to bring the precious resource of water to the citizens of Matera.

Goodbye, Matera!

We thoroughly enjoyed this magical piece of history filled with a hodgepodge of memorable sights and scenes.  Impressions of Matera are probably best said by Carlo Levi….

“Anyone who sees Matera cannot help but be awe-struck, so expressive and touching is its sorrowful beauty.” 

Carl Levi