MATERIALS AND CONSTRUCTION SYSTEMS OF THE RUPESTRIAN CHURCHES OF MATERA. THE CASE STUDY OF SANTA MARIA DE ARMENIS

In the old part of the city of Matera, named Sassi, and in its surrounding territorythere are 155 rupestrian churches carved out into the calcareous rock of the area, asoft calcarenite of biochemical origin. These churches are UNESCO Word Heritagesince 1993. Most of them date back to the early middle Ages when Benedictine andByzantine monks came to the city. At first, the monks lived apart from society innarrow caves. Over the time, the original hermitages evolved towards complexsystems of caves, referred as cenobites, embellished with magnificent frescoes. Thepanels illustrate the research activity carried out on the case study of Santa Maria deArmenis, which has undergone significant modifications over the centuries. Theobtained results have allowed detecting the degradation phenomena of thecalcarenite and knowing the peculiar systems adopted to building within the originaldug environments.