Museo Archeologico di Olbia

About the museum

The museum presents the whole history of ancient Olbia and its territory, from prehistory to the 19th century, with particular attention to the Phoenician, Greek, Punic and Roman phases of the urban and port area. Olbia is the only city in Sardinia to have been inhabited by the Greeks, from around 630 to 520 BC, and the Greek name Olbía, “happy”, has been adopted as the name and logo of the museum.

The building stands on the small Peddone island, in front of today's port and the historic centre. The design by G. Maciocco evokes a moored ship, referring to the harbour setting and to Olbia's role as Sardinia's port. From the terraces the view takes in the port, the site where the wrecks were found just one hundred metres away, and the entire inner gulf.

On the ground floor, two of the eleven wrecks of Roman cargo ships discovered in the excavations of the ancient port are displayed. They were burned during a Vandal attack around 450 AD. The display includes reconstructed sections at full scale, rudders and two masts, and the wreck of a small medieval boat, the only one currently on public display in Italy. The first floor is devoted to the urban area, from the prehistoric and Nuragic phases through the Phoenician and Greek-Phocaean foundations and the Carthaginian and Roman periods, up to the Byzantine, Judicate and Aragonese ages.

Highlights

• Wrecks of Roman cargo ships burned by the Vandals around 450 AD
• Wreck of a small medieval boat, the only one on display in Italy
• 180° projection of the Vandal attack on the Roman city
• Large model of the port from the 2nd century AD
• Punic stele with the symbol of Tanit and a head of Hercules on a reconstructed body

Permanent exhibitions

• Piano terra: il porto e le navi – Wrecks of Roman cargo ships and of a medieval boat, reconstructed sections, a projection of the Vandal attack and a model of the port from the 2nd century AD.
• Primo piano: la città di Olbia – From the Nuragic phases and the Phoenician and Greek foundations through the Punic, Roman, Byzantine, Judicate and Aragonese periods, with heads of Domitian, Domitia and Hercules.

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission is free.

Accessibility

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Kids & families

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Getting there & parking

The museum is on Peddone island, opposite the historic centre, in the Porto Vecchio (old port).

Amenities & dining

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Events & venue rental

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