Matera has gained international fame for its ancient town, the "Sassi di Matera" (meaning "stones of Matera"), which are reason enough for a visit in Basilicata.
Listed among the UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1993, the Sassi are houses overlapping one above another and linked by little and narrow streets and wide stairs. Inhabited since the past until last century, they have brickwork facades but the inside is completely dug into the rocks. The word Sassi means, in this case, “inhabited rock districts” and it's a word used since the Middle Ages to indicate the two districts born around the first centre of the ancient city, the Civita, occupying the two karstic basins overlooking the precipices of the Gravina river: the Sasso Barisano and the Sasso Caveoso. 
Apart from the houses, the architectural landscape has many churches, dug into the rocks, too. The little rupestrian Church Santa Lucia of the Malve, founded by a Benedictine community around the 8^th century, is worth a visit, as well as the Church of the Madonna of Idris, leading to the crypt of San Giovanni in Monterrone, or the four rupestrian churches of the Convicinio of Sant'Antonio. 
The Sasso Barisano shows the Church of San Pietro Barisano, one of the main churches of Matera dug into the rock, the Church of Madonna delle Virtù, included in a very ancient monastery, and the Church of S. Agostino, built in 1591 in baroque style. The city also has a Cathedral, built in 1268-70 in Romanic style, Palazzo Lanfranchi, symbol of the 17^th century architecture in the city, and various museums as the National Archaeological Museum “Domenico Ridola”, the National Museum of Medieval and Modern Art and the MUSMA, Museum of Contemporary Sculpture of Matera. 
In the neighbourhood of Matera the Archaeological Historical and Natural Park of the Rupestrian Churches of the Materano shows an important historical and archaeological heritage: more than 160 rocky churches, three neolithic villages (Serra d'Alto, Timmari and Murgia Timone), and many prehistoric tombs. 
In the south-eastern area of Matera there are many beautiful towns like Montescaglioso, with its wonderful Abbazia of San Michele Arcangelo, Miglionico with its great Castle of Malconsiglio, Bernalda with its 15^th century castle and Tricarico, Grassano, Irsina and Ferrandina, all full of monuments to see. Going on to the south, we reach the suggestive Calanchi area, with white clay hills, pinnacles, cones and small canyons dug by sun and rain. In this area the uninhabited village of Craco is very nice, with a lot of historical places, the castle and a group of houses on the rocks surrounded by little streets, stairs and small squares. 
Moving on we find the village of Tursi, with its Rabatana district, the ruins of the Castle and the church of S. Maria Maggiore of Rabatana, and the church of S. Maria d'Anglona nearby. The coast on the Ionic sea, the only plain area of the province, is rich in archaeological ruins, because in the past it was one of the main centres of the Magna Graecia. In particular, the archaeological area of Metaponto deserves a visit, with ruins such as the temple in Doric-archaic style dedicated to the goddess Hera, called Tavole Palatine, and the Temple of Apollo in Doric style or the ionic temple dedicated to Aphrodite, built around 470 BC. Furthermore, the ancient agora with the theatre, and the National Archaeological Museum of Metaponto, with many archaeological finds. Lastly, Policoro, with its Castle, the archaeological Park with the Greek ruins and the National Museum of Siritide.