According to some sources, the Church of the Madonna delle Virtù was carved out in the 12th century. Thus, as with all the other rupestrian churches in the area of Matera, the church is noted for its “negative architecture”, making it unique. Despite being carved out of limestone, it has many of the architectural elements that were typical of constructed Romanesque basilica with three aisles. The accentuated verticality of the vaults, the “poly-lobed” pillars, the simulation of a matroneum on the ogee vault of the central nave, all demonstrate the stone-cutter’s desire to create one of the most intricate and articulated rupestrian churches in the city. Completing this architectural gem are three cupolas which, compared to the little pseudo-cupolas present in the city’s other rupestrian churches, are framed by relief Greek crosses. The uniqueness of this rupestrian church can be seen not only in its well-structured architecture, but also in the later-dated frescoes of the church.
In the central nave, there is a Crucifixion with the Virgin Mary and St. John the Evangelist that, due to its style, is most likely from the 16th century. On the counter-façade of the right aisle, there is another Crucifixion with the Virgin Mary and St. John the Evangelist from the 15th century, which looks as if it were part of a separate block of tuft-stone from a different time period. One of a kind, this fresco suggests that it was moved from somewhere else to the place in which it is now situated. After a period of abandonment in which the church came to be used as an illegal landfill, in 1967 at the expense and under the guidance of the Circolo La Scaletta, the church was completely restored, giving it the original floor-plan and reconstructing the entrance in the central nave.

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