Chiesa di Santa Lucia alle Malve (Church of Santa Lucia at Malve), Matera

The Church of Santa Lucia alle Malve is a rock church near the Sasso Caveoso, annexed to a women's Benedictine monastery of the 11th century. The church was first dedicated to Saint Agatha and then to Saint Lucia between 1217 and 1267. The nuns moved in 1525 to the monastery of Santa Lucia alla Civita and later to Santa Lucia al Piano. The church became a residence.

Three sculptures of chalices, each from a different era, adorn the facade. They refer to the martyrdom of Saint Lucia. Frescoes, discovered in 1977, decorate the inner walls. The 12th-century pictures show Gabriel crushing a dragon, the Nursing Madonna, San Nicola, San Benedetto, Giovanna Battista, and others.

The church is easy to see compared to the monastic houses. In 1283 the community of nuns moved to the Civita, and the structures became private homes. The church is in two parts. The right aisle, restored and renovated, is open to the public. Mass is celebrated here on December 13, Saint Lucia's Day.

The second part encompasses the other aisles as private residences. The three naves are not symmetrical; they are formed more by stones shaped by nature than craft, similar to a lithotome. The crypt of the church has rich, vivid frescoes. Above the church is a necropolis of rock tombs.