Pontifical Basilica Cathedral of Maria Santissima della Bruna and Sant'Eustachio

Known as the Cathedral of Matera, the Cathedral of Matera, which has the official name of the Cathedral of the Madonna della Bruna and of Sant'Eustachio, is the main Catholic place of worship in Matera, the mother church of the archdiocese of Matera-Irsina.

The cathedral was built in the Apulian Romanesque style in the thirteenth century on the highest spur of the Civita that divides the two Sassi.

Built on the area of ??a previous Norman castle and as evidenced by recent excavations on a previous early Christian place of worship, it is the most majestic cathedral in the region.

On the area of ??the ancient Benedictine monastery of Sant'Eustachio, protector of the city, where Pope Urban II had already stayed between 1093 and 1094, the cathedral was built starting from 1230, a few years after Pope Innocent III had raised the city ??of Matera to the rank of archdiocese in union with Acerenza; it was built at the behest of Emperor Frederick II of Swabia, Holy Roman Emperor and Count of Matera.

In order for the new temple to dominate the surrounding buildings and the two underlying valleys of the Sassi with its bulk, it was necessary to raise the rocky base by over six meters.

Completed in 1270, the new cathedral was originally dedicated to Santa Maria di Matera, as shown in a notary deed of the time. Subsequently in a will of 1318 it is entitled to Santa Maria dell'Episcopio and from 1389, the year in which Pope Urban VI (former archbishop of Matera) instituted the feast of the Visitation, was dedicated to Santa Maria della Bruna, also protector of the city . Finally, starting from 1627 Msgr. Fabrizio Antinori, archbishop of Matera, dedicated the cathedral of Matera to the Madonna della Bruna and to Saint Eustace. On July 2, 1962, Pope John XXIII elevated it to the dignity of a minor basilica. In 1991 he received a visit from Pope John Paul II.

Since 2003 it has been involved in important restoration works. In 2006 it received a series of consolidation and restoration interventions, including that of the medieval trusses and previously collapsed cornices. These interventions were also carried out thanks to the funds of the Gioco del Lotto, based on the provisions of law 662/96.

On 5 March 2016 it was reopened for worship by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State, who opened the Holy Jubilee Door for the occasion.

Also present were Msgr. Salvatore Ligorio, Metropolitan Archbishop of Potenza-Muro Lucano-Marsico Nuovo, Msgr. Claudio Maniago, bishop of Castellaneta, Msgr. Agostino Superbo, archbishop emeritus of Potenza-Muro Lucano-Marsico Nuovo, mgr. Antonio Ciliberti, archbishop emeritus of Catanzaro-Squillace, mgr. Michele Scandiffio, archbishop emeritus of Acerenza, mgr. Giuseppe Favale, elected bishop of Conversano-Monopoli, and Msgr. Pierdomenico Di Candia, diocesan administrator of Matera-Irsina.

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Map: Pontifical Basilica Cathedral of Maria Santissima della Bruna and Sant'Eustachio