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“I arrived to Matera towards the eleven of themorning. I had read in the guide that it is a characteristic city, that it deserves of being visited, than it is a museum of ancient art and the curious troglodytic rooms. A far little from the station, I arrived to a road, than from a single side it was flanked from old houses, and other near the canyon. In that canyon it is Matera. The form of that ravine was strange; like that of two average placed side by side funnels, separated from a small spur and re-united low in a common apex, where we looked a white church , Saint Maria de Idris, that she seemed build in the earth. These turned upside down cones, these funnels, are called Are known. They have the form with which, to school, we imagined l' hell of Dante, in that strait space between the facades and the declivity passes the roads, and is entirety pavements for who exits from the rooms of over and roofs for those of underneath. Raising the eyes I finally saw to appear, like an oblique wall, all Matera. It is indeed a city beautifulst, characteristic and impressive. ”

(From the book Christ di has been stopped to Eboli Carl Raises)

excuse me for bad translation :)



Dug and constructed near the Gravina of Matera, a deep canyon (see yesterday photo) that divides the territory in two, Is known of Matera, quarter that they constitute the ancient part of the city, is stretched slightly in two little valleys, that they watch to east, subordinates regarding the surrounding territories, separated between they from the full of rocks spur of the Civita. This enviable position, has rendered of fact the invisibile city to the eyes of its enemies forthousand of years, having allowed them to pass almost undamaged through centuries than history. The choice of this site, although it has guaranteed an extreme emergency all' lived, difficulty has involved to its enormous inhabitants nell' supplying of waters. Of fact It is known are found on an enormous calcarenitico bench to approximately 150 meters from the level of the torrent, while the hills d' clay encircles that them to the west turns out to be too much far, for a city defence, it had to be guaranteed autonomy to its inside. Sin from first days therefore, its inhabitants concentrated their energies, not as well as on the construction of the houses, how much on the digging of reservoirs and divers and the relative systems of canalization of waters. Sight in quest' Matera optical turns out to be one of antichi and better conserved examples than bio-architecture to the world. A short constructed systems analysis around all water, we extension like of fact all the civilizations and the more ancient constructive traditions of the world, have numerous points in municipality, although centuries and kilometres see to them like distinguished elements. To a careful eye, simple and apparently rudimental structures, are revealed like of the squanderers of technical efficiency. The humble archaic techniques, forgotten from the same inhabitants, acquire a fascination and a value an unimaginable time. The " trogloditi" that they dig channels and reservoirs, they construct garden hanging, and around the spaces collectives, today calls environs share own resources, appear d' a feature of the brilliant beings. But the beautiful one is that all this is still present and alive, under our eyes in a city, Matera, that it has of the magical one.