Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Verona

About the museum

The Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Verona opened in February 2022, after long restoration work, in the former Habsburg prison of San Tomaso, a 19th-century building considered one of the best-preserved examples of Austrian civil architecture in the city. Next to the 15th-century church of San Tomaso Becket there was originally a convent of the Calced Carmelites (Carmelitani Calzati); between 1844 and 1848 the complex was converted into a prison, where patriots linked to the Carbonari uprisings were detained and tried, including some of the “Martiri di Belfiore”.

Around 1860 the old convent was demolished and the present prison was built on its site. After the building passed to the Italian State, it housed the command of the Territorial Division and then finance offices, before being converted into a museum. The institute depends on the Direzione regionale Musei nazionali del Veneto (Regional Directorate of National Museums of Veneto) of the Ministry of Culture.

The route presents material from the most significant recent excavations in the Veronese area, arranged in sections devoted to prehistoric and protohistoric sites: the Palaeolithic, with the Grotta di Fumane and Riparo Tagliente rock shelters; the Neolithic; the Copper Age; the Bronze Age, with pile dwellings and necropolises; and the Iron Age, with the centres of Gazzo Veronese and Oppeano. A new section on the Roman period is being set up.

Highlights

• Shaman of Fumane, one of the oldest examples of figurative art by early Sapiens
• Venus of Rivoli Veronese and anthropomorphic stelae of the Copper Age
• Materials from the prehistoric pile dwellings recognised by UNESCO
• Tomb of the “child prince” of Zevio with its ceremonial chariot
• Building of the former Habsburg prison of San Tomaso

Permanent exhibition

• Preistoria e protostoria del territorio veronese – The route runs from the Palaeolithic to the end of the Iron Age, with finds from the Grotta di Fumane, Riparo Tagliente, pile dwellings and necropolises; a section on the Roman period is being set up.

Founded

2022

Operated by

Direzione regionale Musei nazionali Veneto (Ministero della Cultura)

Visitors per year

approx. 6,095

Admission & discounts

Free admission: Free admission on the first Sunday of every month (#domenicalmuseo).

Tickets can be bought online via the Musei italiani portal or with the “Musei italiani” app; booking a ticket is not necessary. Free admission also for teachers, journalists and ICOM members.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The museum is accessible to people with mobility impairments, with lifts, accessible toilets and seating areas to rest. On request, dedicated routes are organised for partially sighted, blind and intellectually disabled visitors, with tactile exploration of 3D reproductions of finds.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Stroller-friendly
• Baby changing facilities
• Playground / play area
• Kids’ birthday parties

Baby-changing facility in the third-floor toilet, three play stations and five touchscreen stations with games. Workshops for children aged 5 to 12, archaeology summer camps and birthday parties at the museum (€190, up to 25 children).

Getting there & parking

Walking times from the stations taken from Google Maps, according to the museum's website.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop
• Lockers

Free coded lockers, a vending machine for hot and cold drinks and snacks, and a bookshop with a short guide and publications on Veronese archaeology. Paid augmented-reality tablets are available at the ticket office.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit