Matera: “No Time To Die” in Italy’s cave city

Matera is a must-see for culture and history buffs. Perched above a ravine in the region of Basilicata, it’s one of the most beautiful and enigmatic cities in Europe. It’s also Italy’s best-kept secret, having only emerged as a tourist destination in recent years.

Visiting the troglodyte city of Matera is like stepping back in time. It’s one of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in the world. The historic Sassi district is comprised of Paleolithic cave dwellings dug into the limestone of the ravine. They have been inhabited for around nine thousand years. Only Aleppo and Jericho have been inhabited for longer.

From the belvederes at the top of the city, you’ll be greeted with sweeping views of the caves. It’s a breathtaking sight: you’ll catch a glimpse of what cities looked like thousands of years ago.

What is Matera known for?

Matera has become something of a hipster’s paradise. What could be cooler than sipping a flat white in a cave? It wasn’t always quite so glamorous, though.

Matera came to national prominence in the 1950s. By then it was a forgotten city that had sunk into poverty. Whole families were living in the Sassi mountain caves with no electricity, no food and dressed in rags. Malaria was rife.

The author Carlo Levi had been exiled to the area in the 1930s by the Mussolini regime. He wrote about the squalid conditions in Matera in his book Christ Stopped at Eboli, published just after the war ended. Matera came to be known as “the shame of Italy.”