Area archeologica Monsorino di Golasecca

Open-air necropolis of the Golasecca culture with stone funerary structures from the 8th–7th centuries BC, on the left bank of the Ticino.

Opening hours unknownFree admission

Directions

About the museum

The Monsorino archaeological area lies on a hill terrace at about 250 metres above sea level, on the left bank of the Ticino river, north of Monte Gagliasco. It is part of the great Golasecca necropolis, the site that gave its name to the Golasecca culture, which developed from the end of the 9th or beginning of the 8th century to the 5th century BC among populations of Celtic descent in the southern Verbano area (Lake Maggiore).

The site has been known since the 19th century and was systematically excavated from the end of that century onwards. Since 2001 the area has been state-owned and is regarded as the most important monumental evidence of the culture of the Golasecca Celts in north-western Italy. Circular and rectangular funerary structures dating to the 8th–7th centuries BC are visible: large river cobbles delimit the pits that held the urn with the ashes of the deceased, accompanied by grave goods of ceramic vessels and bronze and iron objects.

The finds from the excavations are not displayed on site but in the Civico Museo Archeologico in Sesto Calende.

Highlights

Circular and rectangular funerary structures in river cobbles (8th–7th century BC)
Eponymous necropolis of the Golasecca culture
State-owned site with free access
Finds from the site displayed at the Civico Museo Archeologico in Sesto Calende

Permanent exhibition

Strutture funerarie golasecchiane – Circles and enclosures of cobbles that marked the cremation tombs of the Golasecca culture, from the 8th to the 7th century BC.

Operated by: Ministero della Cultura (proprietà dello Stato)
Visitors per year: approx. 4,741