Museo Lapidario Maffeiano
One of Europe's oldest public museums: the collection of ancient inscriptions assembled by Marquis Scipione Maffei, in Verona.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The museum was established in Verona around the mid-eighteenth century on the initiative of Marquis Scipione Maffei (1675–1755), a Veronese scholar and antiquarian, and is considered one of Europe's oldest public museum institutions. It grew out of more than thirty years of collecting stone slabs and inscriptions, which Maffei regarded as “speaking antiquities”, direct sources for understanding history.
To house and preserve the material, Maffei commissioned the building from the architect and painter Alessandro Pompei. Its original name, “Museum Veronense”, referred to the city's museum. Unlike private collections, it ensured the preservation of the finds and prevented their dispersal after the owners' deaths. Maffei was convinced that what is useful to the public should be made public.
For more than a century it was the main museum in Verona and a stop on the Grand Tour, visited among others by Johann Wolfgang Goethe in September 1786.
The collections are now arranged in four sections, devoted to Greek civilisation, Etruscan civilisation, Roman civilisation and the eighteenth century.
Highlights
- “Museum Veronense” of Scipione Maffei, one of Europe's oldest public museums
- Sections devoted to Greek, Etruscan and Roman civilisations
- Hundreds of ancient inscriptions collected by Maffei
- Section on the eighteenth century
- Stop on the Grand Tour, visited by Goethe in 1786
Permanent exhibition
- Collezione lapidaria – Inscriptions and stone slabs in four sections: Greek, Etruscan and Roman civilisations, and the eighteenth century.
- Operated by
- Comune di Verona – Musei Civici
- Director
- Francesca Rossi
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €6 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €4Groups of at least 15 people, over-65s, Veneto MyCARD holders and others entitled to reductions |
| Children & teens | freefree up to age 17 · Free admission for under-18s. |
| Seniors | €4Reduction for over-65s. |
| Visitors with disabilities | freecompanion free · Free admission for people with disabilities and one companion. |
| Students & apprentices | €2Young people aged 18 to 25, EU citizens and citizens of countries with reciprocal arrangements. |
| Groups (15+ people) | €4 per personReduced rate for groups of at least 15 people. |
| First Sunday of the month, November to March | €1 |
Free admission also for holders of the VeronaCard and My IMUV Card (residents of the municipality of Verona). At the Arche Scaligere, admission is free with a ticket to another civic museum on the same day. The museum has no ticket office: tickets are bought online or at the ticket offices of the civic museums, especially Arena and Castelvecchio. From 1 October 2026 the ticketing arrangements change.
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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Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Guided tours of the permanent collections of the Musei Civici are free, by reservation, and included in the ticket. Bookings through the education office (tel. +39 045 803 6353, museiverona@spazioaster.it). |
