Art & CultureOver the millennia different people and cultures have shaped Emilia-Romagna, marking its borders and rewriting its history several times.
Following the Via Emilia and visiting the main archaeological sites and museums of the region, we can retrace its history – from prehistory up to our time.
While on the one hand Romagna has its historical traditions and material artifacts of great importance, thanks to the presence of the three-time capital Ravenna (of the late Roman Empire, of the Goths and of the Byzantine) especially, Emilia is marked by a more widespread development, which is mainly concentrated around the major cities of art with Roman origin.
Following our blogpost about Romagna, today we are going to explore Emilia and its most important archaeological sites and museums. We hope you will take some good cues to visit some of them in person1
Archaeological Sites in Emilia – Source Regional Tourism System
Bologna and its Province
Bologna Archaeological City Museum
Where: Via dell’Archiginnasio, 2 | Bologna
The Archaeological City Museum of Bologna is considered one of the most important archaeological collections in Italy. It is housed in the 15th-century Palazzo Galvani since 1881, a few meters away from Piazza Maggiore.
The Etruscan section is really outstanding: it is an essential stop for those who wish to learn more about the Etrurian Padana, whose capital was Bologna (at that time known as Felsina).
The Greek, Roman and Gallic art collections with artifacts coming mostly from this region, and the Egyptian art collection, one of the most important in Europe, are also worth a visit.
The archaeological site of SalaBorsa
Where: Piazza Nettuno 3 | Bologna
Right in the heart of Bologna, just below the crystal floor of the Salaborsa library, the excavations allow to retrace the transformations that this part of the city underwent over the centuries.
There are the Civil Basilica of the ancient Bononia, the Medieval courts, the viridarium and the Renaissance botanical garden. The admission is free during the opening hours of the library.
Bologna’s Roman Theatre
Where: Via de’ Carbonesi 7 | Bologna
Roman Bononia also had a theatre, which was hidden for centuries among the buildings of the historic centre. Its construction began in 88 BC, making it the oldest masonry theatre in Roman architecture. The remains of the structure, incorporated into a building not far from Piazza Maggiore, can now be visited with a guided tour.
The Etruscan town of Kainua (Marzabotto) and the National Etruscan Museum “Pompeo Aria”
Where: Via Porrettana Sud 13 | Marzabotto
Between the 6th and the 4th century B.C., Kainua was one of the most important city-states in the Etruscan Po area.
Every year, the archaeology students of the Bologna University explore the site, and people can walk along the streets of its original urban orthogonal layout to see the Acropolis and the two necropolises.
The visit ends at the museum “Pompeo Aria”, where the numerous artifacts on display show the history of the archaeological site.
“Luigi Fantini” Archaeological Museum
Where: Via del Museo 2 | Monte Bibele
“Luigi Fantini” Archaeological Museum represents the most complete collection of Celtic materials in the region and one of the most important ones in Italy.
The museum tells the history of the settlements in the valleys of the rivers Idice and Zena. Moreover, it collects materials from the excavation campaigns of the Etruscan-Celtic settlement of Monte Bibele and its necropolis (beginning of the 4th and of the 2nd century BC).
SEE ALSO:
- Museum of the ancient Roman Town of Claterna | Ozzano dell’Emilia (BO)
- MUV – Museum and Documentation Centre of Villanovan Culture | Castenaso (BO)
- “Luigi Donini” Museum of Prehistory | San Lazzaro di Savena (BO)
- Archaeological Environmental Museum | San Giovanni in Persiceto (BO)
- “Elsa Silvestri” Archaeological and Paleoenvironmental Museum | Budrio (BO)
- Museum of San Domenico | Imola (BO)
Modena and its Province
Archaeological and Ethnological Museum
Where: Palazzo Dei Musei – Largo Porta Sant’Agostino, 337 | Modena
Inside the 18th-century Museum Palace (Palazzo Dei Musei) are some of the most important cultural and conservative institutions of the city.
The Archaeological and Ethnological Museum, for instance, collects some important material testimonies from the Modena area dating back to the period between the Palaeolithic and the Middle Ages, as well as an ethnological section with artifacts from all over the world.
The Estense Lapidary Museum
Where: Palazzo dei Musei – Largo Porta Sant’Agostino, 337 | Modena
The Museum Palace also hosts the Estense Lapidary collection, strongly desired by Duke Francis IV of Austria-Este (1828). The museum outlines the history of the city with the help of 329 sculptures, dating back from the Roman up to the Medieval and Renaissance age
Terramara of Montale
Where: Via Vandelli (Statale 12 – Nuova Estense) | Montale Rangone
An open-air archaeological park which, thanks to authentic reconstructions and experimental archaeology projects, traces the history of almost four centuries of life in the terramara of Montale, a fortified village from the Bronze Age dating back to between the 16th and early 13th centuries BC.
Reggio nell'Emilia and its Province
Museums Palace
Where: Via Lazzaro Spallanzani, 1 | Reggio nell’Emilia
This museum hosts several ancient collections and artworks dating back to different historical periods.
As far as archaeology concerns, you cannot miss the Roman mosaics, the Chierici Museum, the Portico dei Marmi (Roman section), the Roman Museum, the Prehistory and Protohistory Museum.
SEE ALSO:
- Museum of the Terramara “Santa Rosa” | Poviglio (RE)
- Roman Archaeological Museum | Brescello (RE)
- “Naborre Campanini” National Museum | Canossa (RE)
- Archaeological Area of Luceria | Canossa (RE)
Parma and its Province
The National Archaeological Museum of Parma
Where: Piazza della Pilotta, 3 | Parma
Housed in the rooms of the monumental Palazzo della Pilotta, this museum is one of the oldest in Italy (1760).
Founded to house finds from excavations in the city of Veleia, over the course of history it has acquired various collections (Egyptian, Etruscan and Roman); but above all, it has become an essential reference point for all the studies carried out in the Duchy area.
Piacenza and its Province
The City Museums of Palazzo Farnese
Where: Piazza Della Cittadella, 29 | Piacenza
The city museum and its rich collections are hosted inside the 16th-century Palazzo Farnese. The highlight of this place is the archaeological museum, housed in the adjacent Visconti Palace.
In its rooms you can find artifacts and relics of Prehistory and Protohistory coming from the surrounding area, and the famous Liver of Piacenza, one of the most important artifacts linked to the Etruscan art of divination.
Veleia’s Antiquarium and Archaeological Area
Where: Strada Provinciale 14, 14 | Lugagnano Val d’Arda
The ancient Roman city of Veleia is today one of the most important archaeological sites in Northern Italy.
Wandering through its ruins and inside its antiquarium, you can learn about Veleia’s ancient history, from its pre-Roman origins to its complete abandonment.
“Giuseppe Cortesi” Geological Museum
Where: Ospedale Santo Spirito – Via Sforza Caolzio | Castell’Arquato
“Giuseppe Cortesi” Geological Museum houses a large collection of fossilised molluscs and cetacean skeletons dating back to the Piacenzian stage, i.e. marine deposits formed between 3.5 and 2.5 million years ago. These fossils allow us to trace the evolutionary history of the Po Valley, from the time when this area was completely covered by the sea to the appearance of humans.
Neolithic Village of Travo: Park and Archaeological Museum
Where: Via del Mulino, 22 | Travo
It is one of the most important settlements of Northern Italy, linked to the recent Neolithic (4200 – 3500 BC), and, above all, it is also an archaeological park with a strong educational purpose.
Located in a lovely green area, it shows some full-scale residential buildings, set up with copies of materials and objects discovered during the excavations. The nearby museum completes the tour.
The park hosts various events throughout the year, including the ‘Prehistoric’ costume re-enactment, which takes visitors on a journey back in time 6,000 years.
SEE ALSO:
- Antiquarium “Santa Margherita” | Piacenza (PC)
- Tidone Valley Archaeological Museum | Pianello Val Tidone (PC)
- San Colombano Abbey Museum | Bobbio (PC)
Author
Davide Marino
Davide Marino was born archaeologist but ended up doing other things. Rational – but not methodic, slow – but passionate. A young enthusiast with grey hair
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The Archaeological Sites of Romagna
by Davide Marino /// February 9, 2018