|
The Sassi, Barisano and Caveoso, set on the deep slopes of a valley, with cavernous
meanders and underground labyrinths, hide relics of a remote past rich in culture and history. Caves and underground
architectures are connected by steps carved out of the cliffs and are enclosed by dry-stone walls bounding small
vegetable gardens, authentic stone gardens to be tilled, where the fecund strength of the vegetable world reveals
its utmost potency. Wandering along the streets of this underground city you run into ancient places of worship,
used to celebratc in the depths of the earth the nuptials of sun and stone. To this archaic city fabric, medieval
monasticism brought new sap:
 countless hermitages, churches and hypogean basilicas rise on the sides of the ravine
and in secondary valleys. Some crypts are decorated with frescoes that are often well conserved, many in Byzantine
style.
The superb cathedral, built with the white stone of the nearby Vaglia quarreys, and
looming, with its radia nce, over the entire city, eloquently expresses the simplicity and beauty of the Romanesque
style. The striking churches of Santa Lucia, San Francesco di Assisi, Materdomini, del Purgatorio were built during
the Renaissance and, later, during the Baroque period.
Chiese Rupestri (Rock Churches)
In the area of Matera there is a great number of small churches, some of
which are difficult to reach. They were dug right into the tuff or built into natural caves. They attest to
 the
presence of monastic settlements, places of worship, communities of shepherds, etc., dating back to ancient times.
Some of these rock churches are of noteworthy interest (S. Maria della Valle, also called La vaglia, S. Maria delle
Virtù, S. Maria de Armenis). In others remnants of frescos of
the 12th - 16th centuries have been preserved
(Crypt of the Original Sin, S. Lucia alle Malve, S. Nicola dei Greci, S. Giovanni in Monterrone, Madonna delle
Tre Porte). They are all proof of the continuity of worship and culture in the area. |
