Museo delle navi antiche di Pisa

About the museum

In 1998, during railway works for a control centre near Pisa San Rossore station, objects in wood of exceptional importance emerged at a depth of six metres: a whole series of shipwrecks with commercial cargoes and evidence of life on board. The excavation and restoration site, completed in 2016, recovered some thirty vessels of the Roman period and thousands of fragments of ceramic, glass, metal and organic materials, with the collaboration of dozens of Italian and foreign research institutions.

The museum opened in 2019 in the Arsenali Medicei, commissioned by Cosimo I de' Medici almost four centuries ago to revive Pisan naval power and linked to the Order of the Knights of Santo Stefano. The arsenals were never used to build ships: they became warehouses, then in the 18th century a cavalry barracks, and until 1965 a centre for horse breeding. The display partly preserves the horse stalls, with troughs and gates, while the large bays house the restored ships.

The route, of about 800 finds, is organised into eight sections: the city between the two rivers, land and waters, the fury of the waters, navalia (shipyards), the ships, trade, navigation and life on board. Among the best-known pieces are the Alkedo, the river boats D and I, the large wall with all the amphorae known from Pisa, and the story of the sailor of ship B and his dog.

Highlights

• Roman ships from San Rossore restored in the bays of the Arsenali Medicei
• The Alkedo and its full-scale reconstruction
• Wall with all the amphorae known from Pisa
• Section on navigation by the stars
• Everyday objects from life on board, including games and sailors' clothing
• Preserved horse stalls of the former cavalry barracks

Permanent exhibition

• Le Navi Antiche di Pisa – Eight thematic sections with about 800 finds, from ancient Pisa to the Roman ships of San Rossore, their cargoes and life on board.

Founded

2019

Operated by

Direzione regionale Musei nazionali della Toscana (Ministero della Cultura)

Visitors per year

approx. 21,000

Admission & discounts

Free admission also for EU tourist guides, journalists, Ministry staff, teachers in Italian schools, ICOM and ICCROM members, and teachers and students of archaeology and cultural heritage programmes; full list at cultura.gov.it/agevolazioni. School groups with their own guide: €20 per class for admission, with compulsory booking.

Accessibility

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

According to the museum, the Navi Antiche di Pisa are fully accessible; the toilets at the entrance are equipped for visitors with disabilities.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Baby changing facilities

Routes and workshops for schools and activities for families; there is a nursing area near the bookshop and a changing table in the toilets.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop
• Coat check

Free cloakroom at the entrance; snack and drinks corner in front of the bookshop; bookshop with guides in several languages and books on archaeology and on the restoration of the ships.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit