Matera

Matera, located in Basilicata, is one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, with roots tracing back 9,000 years to the Paleolithic era. Famous for the Sassi (ancient cave dwellings) and over 150 rock-hewn churches, it evolved from prehistoric caves into a Byzantine, Norman, and Renaissance settlement. After being declared a “national shame” due to extreme poverty in the 1950s, it has revived as a UNESCO World Heritage site and 2019 European Capital of Culture.