The square in front of the church above the gorge – church, rock cone and Gravina in one frame. Unlike the upper-town terraces, this view sits inside the district.
The difference from the terraces above
The well-known viewpoints all lie on the edge of the upper town and look at the Sassi from outside. Here you stand in the middle of them. The open square in front of San Pietro Caveoso lies right on the break of slope; from here you see the Monterrone with Santa Maria de Idris, the gorge below and the slopes of the Murgia opposite – but at eye level with the roofs rather than above them.
Why so many photograph here
It is one of the few level squares in the middle of the district and one of the few points where all the elements of the city are in the frame at once: masonry church, rock church in the cone, cave dwellings, gorge. If you can take only one picture of Matera, this is the densest one.
When
In the morning the sun sits well on the Monterrone. In the afternoon the crag falls increasingly into backlight – then the view from Piazzetta Pascoli is the better choice. In the evening the square becomes a meeting place, for the city itself as well.
On from here
From the square steps lead down towards the Gravina and up into the upper town. The furnished cave dwellings are a few steps away, as is the Convicinio di Sant’Antonio.
Read on
- San Pietro Caveoso – the church on the square
- Sasso Caveoso – the district around it
- Viewpoints in Matera – all the views compared
