A Romanesque façade with a rose window, right on the main square – one of the churches you pass in Matera whether you mean to or not.
On the square
San Domenico stands on Piazza Vittorio Veneto and is among the oldest churches of the upper town. The façade dates from the thirteenth century, which puts it in the same building period as the cathedral – an indication that the city was already spreading beyond the edge of the Sassi at that time.
The façade
Characteristic are the large rose window above the doorway and the animal figures framing the entrance. Such figures – lions, fabulous beasts, creatures that cannot be identified with certainty – are a fixed part of Apulian Romanesque. They stood for vigilance and marked the threshold between outside and inside.
The interior was reworked in baroque in later centuries. As with the cathedral, two eras lie on top of each other in one building.
Practical
The church stands at the busiest spot in the city, right beside the Belvedere Luigi Guerricchio and above the Palombaro Lungo. A look at the façade costs no detour; for the interior you need the opening hours.
Read on
- Piazza Vittorio Veneto – the square in front
- Churches in Matera – the overview
- Palazzo dell’Annunziata – the palace on the same side of the square
