# What is the oldest continually used building in the world? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 26, 2023, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135 "2023-10-26T17:22:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SandyHook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dec6dc/32.png) [@SandyHook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SandyHook)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/1 "2023-10-26T17:22:08Z")
I’m not looking for something like the pyramids but a building used primarily for habitation or commerce. As a for instance Paul Revier’s house in Boston is the oldest building in Boston but would not count as it hasn’t been anything but an historical site for many years. The various thousand’s of years old ruins are out as they haven’t been inhabited since who knows when. So where is this place? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/2 "2023-10-26T17:26:01Z")
Probably the **Pantheon** in Rome. Used since 126AD. It has been a Roman Catholic Church most of that time and is still in use. [Cite](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheon,_Rome#Modern): > The Pantheon is in use as a Catholic church, and as such, visitors are asked to keep an appropriate level of deference. [Masses](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Mass) are celebrated there on Sundays and [holy days of obligation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_days_of_obligation). Weddings are also held there from time to time. ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/3 "2023-10-26T17:27:17Z")
The pantheon in Rome was built on the 2nd century AD, was in use essentially ever since as a temple (first to the Greco-Roman gods, then to Christianity) and only recently has it become a museum/tourist attraction. (Edited to add: good grief, possibly strange minds think alike!! XD Ninja’d by literally a second!) ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/4 "2023-10-26T17:37:49Z")
So there is a weird candidate, the small city of **Matera, Italia** has dwellings that have been inhabited as homes for almost 9000 years with some minimal exceptions. Around 1950 the ancient cave dwellings and carved homes were declared unfit for habitation and people were forced out. But by 1990 people were dwelling in homes again incorporating these ancient cave dwellings. Over a 9000 year span, I think we can excuse a less than 40 year gap. It sounds like some of the residents in the 50s refused to relocate anyway. So it is possible there are a few carved homes that have actually had continuous inhabitation for 9000 years. Wow! Up to you, @SandyHook, if this qualifies. > **[Sassi di Matera](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassi_di_Matera)** > > The Sassi di Matera are two districts (Sasso Caveoso and Sasso Barisano) of the Italian city of Matera, Basilicata, well-known for their ancient cave dwellings inhabited since the Paleolithic period. > The "Sassi" have been described by Fodor's as "one of the most unique landscapes in Europe". Along with the park of the Rupestrian Churches, it was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1993. > The Sassi originate from a prehistoric troglodyte settlement and are suspected to be among the first h... Keep in mind, this is significantly older than the Pyramids or Stonehenge which have not actually had continual use. ---
**Author:** ![Orville\_mogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/aeb1de/32.png) [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/5 "2023-10-26T17:48:10Z")
wow, I was just about to post the same thing! I have been to the Sassi (I have family about an hour from Matera). Amazing place, as is Matera. I think they would be a good contender for the prize. It will be far from the oldest, but there is an 11th century tower in the town next to mine that is now apartments. I went to a party in the ‘penthouse’ a few years ago and saw that the walls were 3 feet thick. I love the idea of an apartment in a thousand year old building. There is actually a bust of Cesar embedded in the wall of the tower taken from nearby Roman ruins when the tower was originally built. They must have felt the bust, at 1000 years, was pretty old at the time! > **[La Tour César depuis le Manoir de Nyon](https://notrehistoire.ch/entries/lyYnlELv8E9)** > > Photographie de Pierre Auguste Chappuis lors de sa visite au Manoir de Nyon dans les années 1955, la Tour César domine le quartier de Rive, elle remonte au XIIe... (the date in the article is incorrect, the historical plaque on the outside of the building says XIe siècle) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/6 "2023-10-26T18:59:16Z")
Didn’t we do exactly this question a year or so ago? ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/7 "2023-10-26T20:20:30Z")
But it’s been an entire year. The answer may have changed. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Danger\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6de8d8/32.png) [@Danger\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danger_Man)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/8 "2023-10-26T20:21:53Z")
There might have been a period of time the Pantheon was not used example 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/9 "2023-10-26T20:27:55Z")
Last year the buildings at Madera were thought to be about 9,000 years old. This year they are thought to be about 9,001 years old. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/10 "2023-10-26T21:01:09Z")
I believe the Curia Julia in the Forum is actually older, dating from 44 BC. But “in use” may be the sticking point, in that it doesn’t really have a function anymore, unlike the Pantheon’s continued use as a church. Also would cave dwellings count? I mean, they’re _caves_, not actual structures built by man. ---
**Author:** ![SandyHook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dec6dc/32.png) [@SandyHook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SandyHook)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/11 "2023-10-26T21:12:13Z")
Sassi di Matera, wow, now that’s old. But maybe not exactly what I wanted though I guess I didn’t make that entirely clear. I was looking for an entirely manufactured structure. But I’m impressed by What-\_Exit’s answer. Next time we are in Italy we’ll try to check it out. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/12 "2023-10-26T21:20:53Z")
It really looks like your answer is the Partheon, but it might be worth digging a little more into Sassi di Matera, there might be a few manufactured home that count. They would be far more humble though. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2023, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/13 "2023-10-26T23:20:05Z")
> [@SandyHook](#): > > As a for instance Paul Revier’s house in Boston is the oldest building in Boston but would not count as it hasn’t been anything but an historical site for many years. Tangent: Paul Revere’s house is not the oldest house in Boston-the James Blake house is. Built in 1661, 19 years before what became Paul Revere’s house. I lived in the Blake house as a caretaker in the 1970. Caretakers still live in it (it is a house museum in the Dorchester area of Boston). Graduate school friends lived in the Revere house as caretakers at the same time, so it was lived in as a home at that time. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/14 "2023-10-27T00:20:29Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Last year the buildings at Madera were thought to be about 9,000 years old. This year they are thought to be about 9,001 years old. When I went there I asked a tour guide how old the dwellings were. He said “9,008 years old.” I said “Wow how can you be so precise?” He said “They told me they were 9,000 years old when I started working here 8 years ago.” Disclaimer: old joke adapted to fit the post. I have never been there. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/15 "2023-10-27T01:59:04Z")
> **[Theatre of Marcellus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theatre_of_Marcellus)** > > The Theatre of Marcellus (Latin: Theatrum Marcelli, Italian: Teatro di Marcello) is an ancient open-air theatre in Rome, Italy, built in the closing years of the Roman Republic. At the theatre, locals and visitors alike were able to watch performances of drama and song. Today its ancient edifice in the rione of Sant'Angelo, Rome, once again provides one of the city's many popular spectacles or tourist sites. > Space for the theatre was cleared by Julius Caesar, who was murdered before its construc... There are apartments on the upper floors that according to Wikipedia seem to have been in use since the 400’s if not earlier. ---
**Author:** ![CRhode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crhode/32/10500_2.png) [@CRhode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CRhode)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/16 "2023-10-27T15:02:29Z")
In the US (now) I expect it’s Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe, NM: > **[Palace of the Governors](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palace_of_the_Governors)** > > The Palace of the Governors (Spanish: Palacio de los Gobernadores) is an adobe structure built in the Territorial Style of Pueblo architecture on Palace Avenue in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Located within the Santa Fe Historic District along the Santa Fe Plaza between Lincoln and Washington avenues, it has served as the seat of government for New Mexico for centuries, having been established as the capitol building of Nuevo México in 1610. > In 1610, Pedro de Peralta, the newly appointed governor of ... There seems to be no way to get a good picture of it and not much to see from the outside anyway. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/17 "2023-10-27T15:17:38Z")
Some of the Native American ancestral Pueblo buildings are OLDER than that: > **[Taos Pueblo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taos_Pueblo)** > > Taos Pueblo (or Pueblo de Taos) is an ancient pueblo belonging to a Taos-speaking (Tiwa) Native American tribe of Puebloan people. It lies about 1 mile (1.6 km) north of the modern city of Taos, New Mexico. The pueblos are one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in the United States. This has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. > Taos Pueblo is a member of the Eight Northern Pueblos. A tribal land of 95,000 acres (38,000 ha) is attached to the pueblo, and about 4,500 peopl... > **[Acoma Pueblo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acoma_Pueblo)** > > Acoma Pueblo (/ˈækəmə/, Western Keres: Áakʼu) is a Native American pueblo approximately 60 miles (97 km) west of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. > Four communities make up the village of Acoma Pueblo: Sky City (Old Acoma), Acomita, Anzac, and McCartys. These communities are located near the expansive Albuquerque metropolitan area, which includes several large cities and towns, including neighboring Laguna Pueblo. The Acoma Pueblo tribe is a federally recognized tribal entity, who... ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/18 "2023-10-27T15:27:27Z")
Yeah, I was going to mention the Taos Pueblo. And the Sassi di Matera reminded me of other structures in the Southwest that, unlike the Taos Pueblo, were formerly used by the area’s inhabitants but are now unused (but not necessarily abandoned.) Whenever I go to one of them, I think the inhabitants had it easy because half of the time I am tent camping and I think that the dwellings that are sheltered from the rain in an overhang, and from the wind due to the walls, are much cushier than tent camping, even though they would otherwise have none of the modern creature comforts we expect in a house. ---
**Author:** ![CRhode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crhode/32/10500_2.png) [@CRhode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CRhode)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/19 "2023-10-27T16:03:07Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > Some of the Native American ancestral Pueblo buildings are OLDER than that By gosh you’re right! Present-day permanent residents at Acoma Pueblo are about 30. It appears around 20 at Taos Pueblo. ---
**Author:** ![Quondam\_Mechanic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quondam_mechanic/32/3404_2.png) [@Quondam\_Mechanic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quondam_Mechanic)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135/20 "2023-10-27T16:16:50Z")
Not the oldest but plenty old: the Hagia Sophia. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-oldest-continually-used-building-in-the-world/992135.md?page=2)