Directly above Madonna delle Virtù, with Byzantine-influenced paintings – and a name that points to a long-forgotten tradition.
The name
San Nicola dei Greci belongs to the same complex as Madonna delle Virtù and lies one level above it. The addition dei Greci points to the Greek Orthodox tradition that was present in southern Italy for centuries. Monks from the Byzantine cultural sphere shaped the monasteries of the region – and with them came a visual language noticeably different from the western one.
Paintings
Depictions of saints in Byzantine style survive, among them a Crucifixion. In places the colours are still strong. Characteristic is the strict frontality: the figures look straight at the viewer rather than being bound into a scene. Visit one of the later-painted churches afterwards and the difference is immediately clear.
The way there
Both churches are visited together. The path runs along the slope with a view into the Gravina – one of the finer stretches in the Sasso Barisano, and one of the points where it becomes obvious how close to the drop the city was built.
Read on
- Madonna delle Virtù – the complex one level below
- San Pietro Barisano – the largest rock church in the same district
- Rock churches in and around Matera – the overview
