Palazzo dell’Annunziata is a Rococo-style palace located in Piazza Vittorio Veneto, in Matera. The front part of the palace rests on the 16th-century tower of Castello Tramontano. SHORT HISTORY OF PALAZZO DELL’ANNUNZIATA The palace was built starting with 1735 as the new Monastery dell’Annunziata for the Dominican nuns, as is written on the architrave of one of the entrances. The architect Vito Valentino from Bitonto was in charge of the project, with the approval of the Pontifical Commission of Rome. In 1734, the project was ready, and in 1735 the work was already proceeding at full speed. However, a strong friction appeared between the Dominican nuns and the architect Valentino, and in 1739 the works were suspended and Valentino was removed. In 1742, Mauro Manieri became the new architect, called directly from Lecce together with the Simone brothers, who took on the commitment to complete the work and build also a new church. Before the construction was completed, the nuns temporarily settled with other congregations. Only in 1747, the nuns came into possession of the new monastery, with the construction not yet finished and without the construction of the church. About a hundred years later, the nuns finally decided Read more [...]