Matera, Italy. Don't Miss It!

A Subterranean Settlement

 On the southern cliff face of the deep ravine where Matera was founded, the rocky uninhabited surfaces dotted with small caves can be seen. On the east face of the ravine also,there are ancient caves, and it is here that inhabitants began to make use of these natural features gradually building outwards, clinging to the rocks to create shelter as well as digging even deeper into the cliffs to hollow out alcoves and rooms where homes took root. On the west wall of the ravine as the river takes a turn far below, are further cave houses.., many still deserted, bur some now being reclaimed and re-inhabited.
































The recent history of the cave dwellers of Matera is a surprising story which indicates the mistakes which can be made by well meaning individuals and agencies. The cave dwellers of Matera were discovered in the fifties by media who ran shock stories of disapproval at the primitive nature of the living conditions and the perceived poverty of those living there. The city fathers were shamed into taking action and local inhabitants were compelled to re-house in dwellings in the more modern part of Matera. But repetitive modern council housing is not to everyone's taste. Over time the locals have returned in ones and twos to their old dwellings and now the Sassi are alive once more.

In fact the uniqueness of the Sassi has made this not just a tolerated area. Now this has become the desirable quarter of Matera where tourists prefer to go to experience a street-scape and a lifestyle truly different. Since 1993 the cave homes of Matera have been reinvented under the protection of Unesco. It is believed that these are the first settlements of Italy, and the history of the region dates back to the Paleolithic period. This is in fact a troglodyte settlement - a settlement  of cave dwellers. Moore recently - in the third century BC, - the area became a Roman settlement known as Mathlea, Known also as La Cita Sotteranea, - the subterranean city - and as the Sassi of Matera, the town has become famed throughout Italy for its surreal landscape and sense of living history.








With churches, restaurants and hotel rooms carved into the rocks, Matera offers something exceptional in its make-up. Chic hotels where rooms are half burred into the honeycombed hillside provide a nest-like atmosphere, - a strange combination of raw nature and luxury living.

Also Pip McCurdy's New Zealand posts:

On Blogspot, Pip McCurdy on the Road

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Matera - Town of Caves

The Grey Veil

The strangely grey town of Matera has a history as unique and unusual as its landscape. From the moment of arrival you will know that there is something different about Matera - a town as unearthly and mysterious as it is beautiful. Matera is carved out of the steep cliffs which surround the valley it looks out over. The valley floor is far below and on the other side of the valley only sparse bushes and the caves of the pock marked cliff face can be seen. But on the west side a town has formed;  an ancient town where folk have lived the same way for centuries. No colour breaks the scene, Only at nights the amber of the street lights and the small glow through the windows of family homes can be seen.

The cliff faces where the houses of Matera have taken root are steep and inhospitable. Mostly there are only small paths and stairs as access- ways. Few roadways make their way up the cliff. At the top of the valley the rooftops of Matera's New Town can be seen. But the valley remains the domain of the cliff dwellers. Matera Old Town has the presence of antiquity. It feels untouched, impenetrable, unyielding to modern times. It is a town of the past which has survived to the present day, somehow escaping all modernisation. The grayness of ancient Matera in particular, sets it aside from other historic towns where the colours of paint and decoration have changed the face of the past.






The historic face of Matera is not its only face. There is the modern part of this town also, which resembles medium sized urban towns found all over Italy. But the old stone cave houses, -  the Sassi of Matera - are the face of the town which is so unique and and which creates a backdrop to be found nowhere else in Italy.

The film industry has also discovered Matera, with many shoots now taking place in amongst the cave-homes, the stone paths and the churches part buried into the rocks. As you watch on the big screen whether you are in ancient Rome or Jerusalem, or in the Sassi of Matera, you may never know.

Also Pip McCurdy's New Zealand posts:

On Blogspot, Pip McCurdy on the Road

Website: http://www.unusualstays.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Stay-Somewhere-Strange-273777766054597/