Museo delle macchine da miniera

About the museum

The Museo delle macchine da miniera is located at Masua, in the municipality of Iglesias, within a large mining area run by IGEA, the in-house company of the Sardinian Region that manages disused mining sites. The area preserves an exceptional record of the island’s mining history, alongside the village of Masua and Porto Flavia.

The exhibition gathers more than seventy machines and items of equipment specific to mining work: from the pickaxe to pneumatic hammers, including trolleys, power shovels and wagons for transporting minerals and miners. It traces the evolution of excavation equipment from the days when work depended on human strength, a few tools and pack animals, to the industrial era of the Iglesiente mines, which began around 1850, and to the mechanisation of the workings.

The lead and zinc mines of Sardinia often served as a testing ground for manufacturers, who adapted their machines here to increasingly specific needs. One example is the Montevecchio loader, whose prototype was designed and built in the workshops of the mining company before the patent was transferred to Atlas Copco. The visit lets you see an almost encyclopaedic display in which every machine has a story to tell.

Highlights

• More than 70 mining machines and pieces of equipment
• Montevecchio loader, a prototype later patented by Atlas Copco
• Trolleys, power shovels and wagons for minerals and miners
• From the pickaxe to pneumatic hammers
• Mining village of Masua and Porto Flavia nearby

Permanent exhibition

• Esposizione delle macchine da miniera – More than 70 machines and pieces of equipment for mining work, from the 19th century to the mechanisation of Sardinia’s mines.

Operated by

IGEA S.p.A.

Admission & discounts

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Accessibility

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Kids & families

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Getting there & parking

The museum is at Masua, along the SP 83 in the Iglesias area, not far from Porto Flavia.

Amenities & dining

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Events & venue rental

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