The city of Matera in southern Italy is thought to be among the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Its stone-made buildings lie atop a hill above a ravine, while its millennia-old cave dwellings helped make Matera a UNESCO World Heritage site.

       Because of its history, the city has attracted attention from adventurers and Hollywood: Scenes from Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” were filmed there, as were parts of Patty Jenkins’s “Wonder Woman.”