Casa Grotta del Vicinato

Welcome

Dear guests, welcome to Matera. You are in the Casa Grotta del Vicinato, in the heart of the Sasso Caveoso, in a space largely carved into calcarenite, a rock similar to tuff. The vicinato is a typical urban form of the Sassi: a shared courtyard around which several dwellings are arranged. This was where family and social life developed.

The cave dwelling

From the entrance, you can observe above the built section leaning against the excavated one. The cave dwelling consists of a single room, with the doorway serving as the only source of light and air. It is a simple and essential structure, clearly reflecting the living conditions of the past.

The grain chest and the bed

At the back of the house, next to the bed, there is a large chest with two small openings at the bottom: this is the grain chest, divided internally into two compartments, one for the family’s grain and the other for animal feed. To its left is the double bed, a central feature of the household furnishings. The mattress was made of dried corn leaves. The bed was raised off the floor both to protect it from dampness and to use the space underneath for storage, but also to make room for the hen with her chicks, which, together with the mule and the other domestic animals, helped to warm the house.

The warmth of the home and the stable

In front of the bed is the brazier, used to heat the house. Behind the bed is the stable, where various work tools are displayed, such as the cart wheel, the wooden yoke used to harness the cart for the mules, and the aluminum plate corresponding to the cart’s registration and tax tag. The presence of animals inside the home was a normal part of daily life and also helped to keep the space warm.

Objects of everyday work

Fixed to the wall is the rope drill, used by the so-called plate repairer to mend plates and other terracotta or ceramic objects. On the small table in the center of the house, you can see a plate repaired with this technique, a sign of a material culture based on reuse and the careful preservation of every object.

The chamber pot and the lack of services

Behind the grain chest is the chamber pot, used for bodily needs. The cave dwellings, in fact, had no sewage system, and this detail gives an immediate sense of the harsh hygienic conditions in which people lived.

The cistern and water

To the right of the grain chest is a cavity in the rock: this was a large bell-shaped cistern used to collect rainwater. Since the cave dwellings had no running water, the cistern was essential for daily life. This system began to fall into disuse from 1927 onwards, when the Apulian Aqueduct reached Matera and cast-iron fountains and public water points were installed in various parts of the city. Later, the cistern was incorporated into the house, expanding its interior space.

Tools preserved in the cistern

Inside the cistern, many objects connected with rural and domestic life are displayed: the threshing roller, the plough, the spinning wheel, the dowry chest or linen chest, which contained the dowry brought by the wife, and the wash tub, a galvanized metal basin used both for washing clothes and for bathing children. Fixed to the wall is also the Lopa, a tool used to retrieve buckets that had fallen into the cistern.

The kneading trough and Matera bread

Next to the opening of the cistern is the kneading trough, or bread chest, used to store food such as bread, flour, and cheese. On top of it is the traditional bread of Matera. The housewife prepared the dough at home: each loaf could weigh between 6 and 9 kilograms and was then taken to the public ovens to be baked together with the loaves of other families. To recognize their own bread, families used a stamp with the initials of the head of the household.

The kitchen and domestic life

Eight people lived in this house: husband, wife, and six children. To the right of the kneading trough is the typical masonry kitchen, equipped with one wood-burning stove and two charcoal burners. On it are displayed various utensils used in food preparation, such as pans for baking focaccia, the dough container used for bread rising, sieves for flour, grain, and legumes, and a potato masher placed on the floor next to the stairs.

The evacuation of the Sassi

This Casa Grotta was inhabited until 1959. Following Law 619 of 1952, promoted by Alcide De Gasperi, around 17,000 people were moved to the new districts of the modern city, built according to a specific urban plan drawn up by the architects Luigi Piccinato and Ludovico Quaroni. The evacuation of the Sassi took place between 1952 and 1968, followed by a long period of abandonment. Only in 1986 did a new law begin the conservative restoration of these districts.

Matera today

Today, nearly 80% of the districts are state-owned, while the rest is privately owned. In 1993, the Sassi of Matera were recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, above all because of one of their most extraordinary features: the rainwater collection system. In 2019, Matera was named European Capital of Culture, confirming the historical and cultural value of this unique place in the world.

Enjoy your visit

For any further information, please contact the staff. Thank you for your attention, and enjoy your visit to the Casa Grotta del Vicinato.