Museo diocesano di Benevento

About the museum

The Museo diocesano di Benevento was founded in 1981 on the initiative of Archbishop Raffaele Calabria, with the aim of collecting and making known the artistic heritage of the cathedral and the diocese. The display occupies the pseudo-crypt of the Duomo and several rooms of the Palazzo Arcivescovile; today the museum is entrusted to the Fondazione Benedetto Bonazzi.

The exhibition presents objects of historical, artistic and liturgical value, including the so-called chair of Saint Barbatus in wrought iron, early Christian inscriptions, funerary verse inscriptions of the Lombard princes, an 8th-century reliquary capsella, fragments of medieval frescoes such as the Mater Misericordiae, and objects linked to Archbishop Vincenzo Maria Orsini, later Pope Benedict XIII. A multimedia room offers thematic insights, with reproductions of manuscripts in Beneventan script and a three-dimensional copy of the cathedral’s bronze door.

The archaeological section, inaugurated on 18 December 2012, extends beneath the floor of the cathedral, rebuilt between 1950 and 1965 after the bombings of 1943. Excavations begun in 2005 have revealed traces of prehistoric occupation, a settlement of the Latin colony, a Samnite place of worship, a Roman building and the early Christian basilica. Since 22 December 2023 the entrance has been in Piazza Orsini and passes through the remains of the medieval basilica of San Bartolomeo.

Highlights

• Archaeological route beneath the cathedral, with layers from prehistory to the Middle Ages
• Chair of Saint Barbatus, wrought iron (7th century)
• Pseudo-crypt with medieval frescoes, including the Mater Misericordiae
• Objects of Archbishop Orsini: coral monstrance and golden rose
• Multimedia room with a three-dimensional copy of the cathedral’s bronze door

Permanent exhibitions

• Percorso archeologico ipogeo – Excavated area beneath the cathedral with prehistoric, Samnite, Roman, early Christian and Lombard traces, digital panels and panoramic cameras.
• Pseudocripta e percorso espositivo – Sacred art, inscriptions, liturgical furnishings and objects of Archbishop Orsini in the pseudo-crypt and the rooms of the Palazzo Arcivescovile.

Founded

1981

Operated by

Diocesi di Benevento; gestione Fondazione Benedetto Bonazzi ETS

Visitors per year

approx. 4,000

Admission & discounts

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: no information
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• 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

The website gives no information on accessibility; the archaeological route lies below the level of the cathedral.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The entrance is at Piazza Orsini 33, next to the fountain and the statue of Pope Orsini; groups for guided tours gather under the arcades of the Palazzo Arcivescovile.

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit