National Museum of Matera – Lanfranchi Palace
Palazzo Lanfranchi is a monumental seventeenth-century palace in the heart of Matera’s historic centre, perched above the Gravina gorge and overlooking the renowned Sassi cave district. Originally built as a diocesan seminary in 1669, the building was converted during the twentieth century into the National Museum of Matera (Museo Nazionale di Matera), which houses an important collection of prehistoric finds, medieval artworks, and contemporary paintings spanning the region’s deep cultural history. The museum, sometimes listed as MuMa, is a key institution for understanding the art and archaeology of ancient Lucania.
At a glance
- Type
- National museum / historic palace
- Period
- Palace built 1669; museum established 20th century
- Style
- Southern Italian Baroque
- Location
- Piazzetta Pascoli, Matera, Basilicata, Italy
- Coordinates
- 40.6639° N, 16.6092° E
- Managed by
- Ministero della Cultura (MiC) / Polo Museale della Basilicata
Overview
Palazzo Lanfranchi occupies a commanding position at the edge of the Civita, the oldest part of Matera, with views across the Gravina ravine towards the ancient Sassi cave settlements. The National Museum of Matera within its walls holds archaeological artefacts from prehistoric through to Roman times, medieval Lucanian artworks, and a significant collection of twentieth-century Italian painting donated to the city. The building itself is a notable example of ecclesiastical Baroque architecture that reflects the Counter-Reformation cultural ambitions of the diocese of Matera.
History
The palace was commissioned in 1669 by Bishop Lanfranchi as a seminary to train priests for the diocese of Matera, giving the building both its name and its original purpose. For two centuries it served the church before passing to public administration in the twentieth century, when the state began collecting and displaying the rich archaeological heritage unearthed in the Matera area. During Matera’s tenure as European Capital of Culture in 2019, the museum’s collections and facilities were significantly upgraded, raising its international profile considerably.
What you see
The museum’s permanent galleries are arranged over multiple floors of the palace, opening with prehistoric and protohistoric finds including pottery, metalwork, and burial goods from settlements in the Matera plateau and Murge area. A dedicated section covers the indigenous Lucanian cultures and their contact with the Greek colonies of Magna Graecia, featuring painted ceramics and bronze objects of exceptional quality. The upper floors display a broad collection of southern Italian paintings from the sixteenth to twentieth centuries, with works by Carlo Levi — best known for his memoir Christ Stopped at Eboli — holding particular cultural resonance. The terrace and upper windows offer sweeping views over the Sassi and the Gravina canyon below.
Cultural significance
As the principal state museum of the Matera area, Palazzo Lanfranchi is the institutional guardian of the region’s layered identity, from Palaeolithic cave dwellers to contemporary artists drawn by Matera’s unique landscape. The Carlo Levi collection is especially significant: Levi was exiled to Basilicata under Mussolini and his literary and artistic responses to the region helped bring global attention to a part of Italy that had been largely invisible to the outside world.
Practical information
- Address
- Piazzetta Pascoli, 75100 Matera MT, Italy
- Opening hours
- Check the official museum website or the Polo Museale della Basilicata for current hours and admission prices
- Admission
- Standard state museum ticket; reduced rates for EU citizens under 25 and over 65
Getting there
Palazzo Lanfranchi is in the Civita district of Matera’s historic centre, reachable on foot from the main Piazza Vittorio Veneto in about ten minutes. Matera is served by the Ferrovie Appulo Lucane (FAL) rail line from Bari, with a journey time of roughly 90 minutes. By car, Matera is about 65 km south of Potenza on the SS7 and easily accessible from the A3 motorway via Taranto or Bari.