Museo Archeologico Nazionale “Domenico Ridola” Matera

The Museo Nazionale "Domenico Ridola" in Matera is one of Italy's oldest national museums, founded in 1910 and named after the physician and archaeologist Domenico Ridola, who donated his personal collection of prehistoric finds to the Italian state. Housed in the former convent of Santa Chiara in the heart of the Sassi district, the museum's collections span from the Palaeolithic to the Iron Age and cover the ancient Greek settlements of Basilicata. Highlights include prehistoric ceramics, bronze weapons, jewellery, and grave goods from the caves and burial sites of the Matera area, offering an exceptional window into the deep prehistory of southern Italy.