Matera is the only place on Earth where houses that are 9 thousand years old still stand (9 photos)

In the Italian region of Basilicata there is a unique settlement - Matera. This is an ancient city, and some of the dwellings here are nine thousand years old. Today, just over 60 thousand people live in Matera, and its history has long turned the town into an unrivaled tourist destination.





From ancient people to modern times

The first settlements on the territory of modern Matera date back to the Paleolithic era, which ended in the 13th millennium BC. But still, the oldest houses here are somewhat “younger”: for example, the dwellings in which people lived nine thousand years ago are still preserved here.



They are carved into the local rocks and look impressive. The area with these old houses is called Sassi de Matera, and literally translated from Italian as “Stones of Matera”. In 1993, UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Site, noting that it is "the most outstanding example of a caveman settlement in the Mediterranean region."





Today it is the only settlement on the planet where people still live in the same houses that their ancestors lived thousands of years ago.

From the shame of Italy to the cultural capital of Europe

However, the city turned into a tourist Mecca not so long ago, because not always everything was fine here. In the mid-twentieth century, Matera was the poorest settlement in Italy. The Italian writer Carlo Levi brought fame to this region, and he spoke about the city not as a wonderful ancient attraction, but as a place where extreme poverty reigns.



His book, Christ Stopped at Eboli, described the region as one of the poorest in the country. In Sassi de Matera at that time, severe diseases were rampant: malaria, cholera, typhoid fever. People in caves without natural light lived with animals under the same roof. There was no electricity, water or sewerage, and the infant mortality rate was a record high for the entire country.



Levi's book was published in 1945, it turned the Sassi de Matera into the shame of Italy. A few years later, the authorities began to move residents to more modern areas, and this continued for quite a long time. Back in the eighties, the old city was considered one of the poorest in Italy, and some of the cave settlements were abandoned. At the same time, the area was chosen by artists and hippies, and this inspired the local administration. They decided to revive Sassi: electricity and running water were supplied to the cave houses, and a new life began here.



Over the past thirty years, the local administration has been doing everything possible to preserve the historical heritage and turn the city into a tourist attraction. It should be noted that everything worked out great for them: in 2019, Matera was declared the cultural capital of Europe. Nowadays there are shops, restaurants, souvenir shops and hotels in the cave houses. The town has changed a lot since the times when Carlo Levi saw it.

A place for all history lovers

The landscape of Matera is completely unique: the cave houses here are dug into the limestone rocks, they cling to a steep slope and are literally built on top of each other. Dwellings have been built on top of other houses for centuries, many streets lie on actual roofs, and the floors of some dwellings are the ceilings of the houses below. On top of the ancient city of Sassi de Matera, a modern city has grown.



There are 180 churches in Matera, and 40 of them are in the ancient part of the city, including the cathedral. The city is so unusual that it has long become one of the favorite places for directors. So, “The Passion of the Christ”, “King David”, “Ben Hur” and many other films were filmed here.



Today the ancient city can be visited with a guide or on your own. You can stay in cave hotels that have preserved their unique historical flavor, but are at the same time comfortable in a modern way.



Now Matera is the ideal place for all culture and history lovers to immerse themselves in the past. The cave dwellings, narrow winding streets and alleys, and rock-hewn architecture create an incredible atmosphere that is unlikely to be found anywhere else on Earth.