Cool and Unusual Things to Do in Matera - Atlas Obscura

Unusual
Attractions
in Matera

Sassi di Matera

People have been living in the cave houses on this Italian hillside since the Neolithic era.

The Crypt of the Original Sin

A cave in southern Italy adorned with thousand-year-old Biblical frescoes existed in obscurity until fairly recently.

La Palomba

An abandoned quarry hides an open-air gallery of huge sculptures, some made from the rubble of 9/11.

Chiesa del Purgatorio

Skulls and skeletons are omnipresent in this church dedicated to souls trapped in purgatory.

Are we missing something unusual in Matera?

Province of Matera, Italy

The Village of Craco

An Italian hillside ghost town.

21 miles from Matera

Atlas Obscura Trips

Rome Behind Locked Doors: Music, Magic, and Secret Crypts

Join us as we go beneath Rome’s streets and behind its locked doors to explore hidden and overlooked places, witnessing a capital city that most tourists rarely experience—strange, magical, and filled with intrigue.

Community Forums / Southern Europe / Italy

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jonasottosen wants to go to Chiesa del Purgatorio

jonasottosen has been to Sassi di Matera

scorz wants to go to Sassi di Matera

roachanator wants to go to Chiesa del Purgatorio

hemmings4fun wants to go to La Palomba