MAR - Regional Archaeological Museum
Resorts: Aosta
- October to March:
daily from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
- April to September:
daily from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Last entry 30 minutes before closing time.
Closed on December 25th and January 1st.
Opening times are subject to variations: we advice to verify them by contacting the phone number reported in the “Contact” area.
from 2 October 2023 the single ticket for the monuments costs €5.00
Reduced 19 - 25 years: € 3.00
Ticket “Aosta archeologica”, valid for six months from the date of issue, allowing one entry in each of the following sites:
- Forensic cryptoporticus
- Early Christian Basilica of San Lorenzo
- Regional Archaeological Museum
Free:
- children and teenagers under 18 years
- visitors with disabilities and their companions
- teachers and other persons accompanying school groups
- on line reservation and purchase of the tickets
- backpacks and bulky bags are not allowed
Accessibility:
the museum is accessible to physically disabled people in wheelchairs. The rooms of the archaeological section are equipped with a pedo-tactile path, Braille panels for the blind and magnifying glasses. Copies and reproductions of the finds are displayed under the showcases in special chests of drawers intended for tactile experiences.
A wheelchair and two strollers for children are available upon request.
Photos and videos: it is possible to take pictures and videos, for private use and not for gain, with any device without flash and support. Shooting with selfie stick is forbidden. Using shots and films for advertising, press or commercial purposes is allowed only upon authorization.
Pets: small animals are admitted inside the monument only if held in one’s arms or transported in a pet carrier.
Until autumn 2024, the MAR-Regional Archaeological Museum becomes Cantiere Museale Partecipato, META\MAR METAMORPHOSE
Site included in the Aosta archeologica cumulative ticket
The Regional Archaeological Museum has a thematic and chronological itinerary.
In the first hall, dedicated to the abbot Justin Boson, first director of the Regio Museo in 1929, are exhibited tiles and north-african oil lamps coming from regional collections.
On the trail of the commercial and cultural axes of the areas of Mesopotamia and Anatolia, as well as following the transmission of megalithic monuments’ models, the exhibition includes some anthropomorphic steles discovered at the extraordinary archaeological site of Saint-Martin-de-Corléans, while in the show-cases are exposed artifacts found in Aosta Valley and dating back to the period going from the Mesolithic to the Salassi era.
Further on, the visit enters the wide space dedicated to Romanization, starting with the model of Augusta Praetoria and the milestone of Constantine, in the past positioned along the Road to Gauls. The two following rooms are reserved to the burial rituals and present some grave goods, together with a reconstruction of a funeral bed found in an incineration tomb in the necropolis of Saint Roch, at the eastern entrance of the roman city. The areas consecrated to the funeral epigraphs and local cults show various pieces, including the famous bronze balteus (belt) with battle scenes between Barbarian and Roman and the silver bust of Jupiter Dolichenus found at the Little St. Bernard Pass with other ritual objects. Public building works are depicted in a collection of prints with the main Aostan monuments, together with fragments of sculptures and frescoes, while everyday life is represented in table and cooking ornaments disposed in the reconstruction of a thermopolium (public place used to serve food and drinks). The roman section ends with the exhibition of personal ornaments and objects related to luxury and well-being.
The Christian-Medieval epoch is represented by the precious 8th-century pulpit found during excavations at Aosta Cathedral and some grave goods from the 4th to the 14th century, including gold decorated glasses and the knight’s sword coming from the Collegiate Church of Sant’Orso.
In the basement area of the Regional Archaeological Museum are conserved the remains of the south-eastern edge of the eastern tower of the Porta Principalis Sinistra, one of the four city gates of Augusta Praetoria, with the Roman levels and the only section of embankment, with the relative counterscarp, still resting on a part of the Roman walls.
The museum finally houses the prestigious “Pautasso” numismatic collection, with coins from the Greek era to the Savoy period. To notice the collection of Celtic, Gallic and Padanian coins.
The hall of the Carugo Collection exhibits findings of Etruscan civilization, of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia.