Museo etnografico dell'Alta Valle Seriana

About the museum

The museum was established in 1982 by the Comune di Ardesio and recognized by Regione Lombardia (Lombardy Region) in 2004. The new display was inaugurated on 16 February 2012 and tells the story of the relationship between the people of the Alta Valle Seriana and their territory through traditional activities.

The sections are devoted to woodcutters and charcoal burners, miners, spinning and weaving, the rural house and the Rasga del Tönöla. The section on miners traces the history of the valley’s mining activity, which begins in very ancient times (a smelting deposit found at Parre in 1883 indicates an activity more than three thousand years old), with extraction techniques, transport by wagons and cableways, ore processing and working roles such as the caporàl, the vagonesta and the taissine.

The rural house is the Ca’ della Murinina, a 15th-century building in the medieval village near the Sanctuary of the Madonna delle Grazie, with settings of domestic life, crafts and mountain farming and objects from the early 20th century; it is open to the public every day. The Rasga del Tönöla is an 18th-century water-powered sawmill at Valcanale, restored and still working, very rare in the province of Bergamo. The website also offers a virtual tour of the museum.

Highlights

• Miners’ section on the history of the mines of the Alta Valle Seriana
• Sections on woodcutters, charcoal burners, spinning and weaving
• Ca’ della Murinina, a 15th-century farmhouse with domestic settings
• Rasga del Tönöla, an 18th-century water-powered sawmill still in working order
• Virtual tour of the museum on the Vivi Ardesio website

Permanent exhibitions

• Boscaioli e carbonai – Tools and history of work in the woods and of charcoal production.
• Minatori – History of the valley’s mining activity, from extraction techniques to ore processing.
• Filatura e tessitura – Tools and evidence of the textile work of Ardesio’s families.

Founded

1982

Operated by

Comune di Ardesio

Visitors per year

approx. 500

Admission & discounts

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Accessibility

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Kids & families

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Getting there & parking

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Amenities & dining

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Events & venue rental

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