Photo: Stef Mec · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Museo di Geoscienze di Rocca di Papa (MUGEOS)

INGV museum in the former 19th-century Geodynamic Observatory in Rocca di Papa, with interactive trails on the Earth’s interior, earthquakes and volcanoes.

Opening hours unknown

Website Directions

Limited operations. According to the museum’s website, guided public visits are temporarily suspended; bookings for school visits have reopened.

About the museum

The museum is housed in the Geodynamic Observatory built at the end of the 19th century by Michele Stefano De Rossi, just above the ancient Fortezza Colonna, at the highest point of Rocca di Papa. The observatory was set up after the Casamicciola earthquake of 1883 as one of the points of the national seismic network and began operating in 1890; in 1932 a well-known experiment on microwaves by Guglielmo Marconi also took place there. From 1936 it passed to the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica.

Under an agreement signed in 2000 between the Comune di Rocca di Papa and the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica, now INGV (Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia), the state-owned building was restored to a design by the architect Ilia Monachesi and converted into a museum, which opened on 26 February 2005. The display was designed by the architect Giuseppe Marinelli De Marco and realised by the company Mizar of Rome.

The permanent trails use exhibits, teaching and play machines and films to explain the basics of Earth sciences: the internal structure of the planet, plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanoes, geology and the Earth’s magnetic field. The museum also hosts a seismic station and a GNSS station, with observations linked to the Colli Albani network, and offers workshops for children, events and sky-watching evenings.

Highlights

Observatory building from 1890 next to the Fortezza Colonna
Interactive trails on the Earth’s interior, plates, earthquakes and volcanoes
Section on the geology of the Colli Albani
Seismic station and GNSS station linked to the area
Panoramic terrace with a view of Rome and telescopes for observation evenings

Permanent exhibition

Percorsi permanenti sulle scienze della Terra – Interactive exhibits, teaching machines and films on the Earth’s interior, plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanoes, the geology of the Colli Albani and the Earth’s magnetic field.

Founded: 2005
Operated by: Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV), in convenzione con il Comune di Rocca di Papa
Visitors per year: approx. 1,000

Admission & discounts

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

Family tours & workshops
Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
Hands-on stations

The museum offers trails with exhibits and teaching and play machines, workshops for children and the app “Caccia al Tesoro dei Castelli” for tablets and smartphones.

Getting there & parking

By car

Parking available

Park at Piazza Giuseppe Di Vittorio (Campi di Annibale car park); from there, follow the signs to the Museo Geofisico.

The museum is in the highest part of the historic centre, next to the ancient Fortezza Colonna.

Get directions

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

School programs	yes
Good to know	The website reports the temporary suspension of guided public visits; bookings for schools are open and can be made by contacting the museum by e-mail or phone. A virtual visit is available on the website.