ANTIQUARIUM Poggio Civitate Archaeological Museum

ANTIQUARIUM di Poggio Civitate-Museo Archeologico

The Antiquarium of Poggio Civitate (archaeological museum of Murlo) is housed inside the ancient Bishop's Palace; it is located in the center of the small village, a medieval castle overlooking the Crevole stream, a tributary of the Ombrone River.

Murlo's archaeological museum houses unique evidence of Etruscan civilization from the surrounding area: in addition to the orientalizing fdecorations from the necropolis of Poggio Aguzzo (7th century B.C.), the finds from the settlement, particularly from the rich princely palace that is its heart, identified on the hill of Poggio Civitate, are notable for their importance. The settlement, among the most important in Etruria, arose and prospered on the roadways that connected the coastal Etruscan cities with those inland.

Archaeological investigations at Poggio Civitate, which are still ongoing, were initiated by an American mission in the 1960s with the encouragement and support of Ranuccio Bianchi Bandinelli. The excavation of the palace, characterized by two distinct construction phases dating from the Orientalizing (7th century B.C.) and Archaic (6th century B.C.) periods, constituted a milestone in our knowledge of Etruscan residential architecture. In particular, the discovery of terracotta elements of roof covering and decoration (acroteria, slabs, dripstones, antefixes) has returned valuable information on the technique and ideology of power of the time.

The second floor of the Murlo archaeological museum houses numerous fine artifacts, including those imported from other cities of Etruria and Greece, illustrating the most salient aspects of daily life, from banqueting to body care. On the same level, moreover, a section is reserved for the large handicraft workshop discovered in the immediate vicinity of the princely palace, where refined and precious objects in ceramics, bronze, ivory and bone were made.

The second floor is, on the other hand, devoted to the well-known remains of the palace's architectural decoration. Proposed here is the reconstruction of a portion of the roof, surmounted by the extraordinary terracotta statues, datable to the early 6th century B.C., and adorned by the clay slabs, which, originally arranged to form a running frieze under the pitch, bear depictions of banquet, assembly, procession and horse racing. Prominent among the acroterial statues is the famous "Cappellone," which has become the true symbol of the Murlo museum: an absolutely unique seated male figure with a long square beard, wearing a wide-brimmed hat with a very high pointed cap.

Then, on the third floor, a selection of everyday objects (mainly for cooking and serving food) and some unique productions of buccheri and small bronze plastics are preserved. Finally, at the end of the tour is a section devoted to some of the most significant grave goods discovered in the nearby necropolis of Poggio Aguzzo.

The museum also has a restoration workshop and periodically hosts lectures, exhibitions, and seminars on ancient art and working techniques, such as goldsmithing, bronzework, and coroplastics. (text Fondazione Musei Senesi)

A MUSEUM FOR EVERYONE

Photos

The Project

A MUSEUM FOR EVERYONE

The aim is to make the Etruscan Museum of Murlo (SI) a museum for everyone, by means of a museum itinerary with display and communication solutions which, while paying attention to welcoming people with disabilities, are not thought of as dedicated but are usable by all.
A project of great cultural value and social importance, which touches on the themes of hospitality, inclusion, the various diversities and the means for overcoming the physical, sensory and cognitive barriers that prevent autonomous visits.
To sum up, with the «A MUSEUM FOR EVERYONE» project, the intention is to increase the number of presences of disabled people, intervening to improve, through suitable means of information, physical accessibility to premises enabling disabled people to fully exploit all the museum can offer. The association intends to set up information material (Internet site, prospectuses and brochures), organize the presentation of the completed project and establish meetings with interested parties.
The Municipality of Murlo, the University of Siena with the Department of Historical Sciences and Cultural Heritage and the Laboratory Forbidden NOT to touch, the Florentine Institute of Prehistory of Florence and the Cultural Association of Murlo participate in the project.
The activity was developed on two levels, the theoretical, cognitive and preparatory level of a general nature, which was carried out through the exhibition "Forbidden NOT to touch", open from 05/21/2021 for over six months.
At the same time, in order not to go beyond mere principle, the first two stations and the new external ramp were presented and are not only more functional but also aesthetically grafted into the architectural context of the Castle.
After a study on the needs and characteristics of our museum, special tactile explanatory panels were designed for the first two exhibits, choosing two of the most significant of the two historical periods of Poggio Civitate: the cut-out acroterion of the horse and rider of the first building of the orientalizing period and the now famous one that has become the symbol of Murlo, the lord with the hat of the archaic period, known as the Cappellone.
The panels synthetically represent the two finds in relief, with different surfaces to the touch according to the parts of the figure represented, the captions are designed for the visually impaired, with increased characters in relief and, for the blind, in the Braille alphabet, so as to allow "everyone" to visit independently. The exploration and understanding of the whole thing is guided by a QR code, which can be consulted with a smartphone, which, through an audio, explains how to analyze and understand the work. The Italian version is also supplied with a video in Lis (Italian sign language), in order to also cover the needs of the deaf.
The next move was then both to decide how to give a condensed version of the complete history and contents of the museum for future users, which and how many exhibits to reproduce, and how to find the necessary resources to complete it.
The study and in-depth examination, together with the museum director, led to the decision to highlight the following themes by creating workstations relating to the banquet, the laboratory, daily life, the funerary area and the four slabs representing the important aspects of the life of Poggio Civitate (the banquet, the horse race, the meeting, the wedding).
All the new panels installed in the Museum have the same characteristics and functions as the first two.
An important part of the reproductions (those in ceramic) has been entrusted to an artisan artist from Murlo, confirming the close connection between the museum and its territory.
As far as the financial aspect is concerned, in addition to the allocations of the Municipal Administration of Murlo and the services of the University of Siena, the intervention of the Cultural Association of Murlo, but above all with an online fundraising programme which contributed approximately 60% of the total investment.
The ground covered so far was presented on 11 June 2023.
At the same time, an itinerary for children with workstations has been planned, and in part already implemented, through the creation of interactive materials and games aimed at increasing awareness of issues relating to accessibility and the use of all the senses which become an integral part of the visits and of the laboratories we promote.
In collaboration with the Fondazione Musei Senesi and with the Coordination of Tuscan Museums For Alzheimer's, the project dedicated to Alzheimer sufferers and their carers was launched with the consequent accreditation of the structure to the National Health System.
All this to really make the Archaeological Museum of Murlo as much as possible A MUSEUM FOR EVERYONE

HOURS

OPENING HOURS.

April through September

Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. / 3:00 p.m. to 7 p.m. (including holidays)

October through March

Fridays through Sundays and all holidays 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m./ 2:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m. (also on holidays, excluding Dec. 25-26 and Jan. 1)

Reservation required for groups of more than 7 people by the day before the visit by calling 0577814099 or +39 3356859146; alternatively, you can email poggiocivitate@museisenesi.org

by reservation
special openings are possible throughout the year for groups over 10 people and for schools

**
TICKETS

full price: € 6.00
reduced: € 4.00
students from 6 years up to university; over 65; accompanying persons with disabilities; groups of more than 10 people; Touring Club members, Edumuseicard holders, ICOM members with membership card

special reduced price: € 1.50
schoolchildren

free
children up to 5 years old; people with disabilities; residents of the Municipality of Murlo; tour guides

guided tours
in Italian language with groups of less than 10 people: € 20.00
in English language with groups of less than 10 people: € 30.00
in Italian language for groups over 10 people € 2.00 (free for accompanying persons)
in English language for groups over 10 people € 3.00 (free accompanying persons)
pupils of schools outside the municipality of Murlo € 2.00 each (free accompanying persons)
free for schoolchildren from the Municipality of Murlo and their accompanying persons

educational activities
groups of less than 10 people € 10.00 each
groups of more than 10 people € 6.00 each
schoolchildren from schools outside the Municipality of Murlo € 2.00 each (free accompanying persons)
free for schoolchildren from the Municipality of Murlo and accompanying persons