Domenico Ridola National Archaeological Museum
Museo archeologico nazionale Domenico Ridola
One of southern Italy’s earliest archaeological museums, displaying finds from the Matera area dating back to the Palaeolithic.
The museum was founded in 1911 in the former convent of Santa Chiara and is based on the private collection of Domenico Ridola, a doctor and archaeologist. Exhibits include pottery from Neolithic ditch villages on the Murge plateau, Bronze Age tombs, and painted ware from an ancient Greek colonial city. Together they help explain the thousands of years of continuous human settlement in Matera. Check the official website for admission. A visit takes about an hour.
Opening hours
Approx. 9:00–20:00 (check official website)
Nearby sights
- Palazzo Lanfranchi
- Sasso Caveoso
- Santa Maria de Idris
- Sassi di Matera
- Casa Grotta di Vico Solitario
- Tramontano Castle
- Church of San Pietro Caveoso
- Matera Cathedral