Craco, Basilicata Italy
[Roman Catholic]
This is Chiesa Madre di San Nicola in Craco; it was the Mother Church. The village was severely damaged by earthquakes in the mid-20th century, causing landslides that made the village uninhabitable. The town, built high on a hill of Pliocene sands over clay, was unstable. In 1963 the remaining 1800 residents relocated to the valley community of Craco Peschiera. Furnishings and statuary from the old church are now in the new church in Craco Peschiera. The population of the new village is now around 970. The ruins of Craco attract former residents and tourists.Photos of a 1960s St Nicholas procession from the old church
