Photograph of the week: Matera, Italy

In times such as these, where sheltering in place is the norm, and socializing feels like a distant memory, it can feel like we’re living under a rock. There is something to be said for rock-dwelling however…

Just take Matera, Italy: a place where the cliffs and rocks of the surrounding landscape have been transformed into living quarters worthy of many a painting and photograph, and even deemed by Fodor’s travel guide as “one of the most unique landscapes in Europe”. Indeed, as the 1500 or so people living there can attest to, there is a unique charm to be found in homes carved from rock. Something which the many visitors who have travelled there – and marvelled in its beauty – can confirm.

Famed for its ‘sassi’, the two neighbourhoods of stone dwellings carved out of the caves and cliffs of the surrounding landscape, as well as the stunning vistas every which way you turn, Matera hasn’t always been hailed as a place of charm…