Museo archeologico di Naxos
Museum on Capo Schisò in Giardini Naxos, on the site of the first Greek colony in Sicily, with finds from the excavations and a route through the ancient city.
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About the museum
The museum stands on Capo Schisò, close to the ancient city of Naxos: a stretch of the city walls crosses the garden, and from here the visit route begins into the area of the ancient settlement. Most of the collection comes from excavations carried out on the site over the last fifty years. A smaller group of pieces was bought or donated by Paolo Orsi, including three 8th-century BC burials from Cocolonazzo di Mola, which document the contacts between the Greek colonists and the Sicels.
The display follows a chronological and topographical order. The best-known core consists of the architectural revetment slabs and the silen-mask antefixes, produced between the late 6th and the 5th century BC, which recall the cult of Dionysus shown on the coins of Naxos. The arula Heidelberg–Naxos (530 BC), with confronted sphinxes, stands out; it was reassembled in 1997 from fragments kept in two different places.
The entrance rooms illustrate the prehistory of the site and the first phases of the Greek colony, with Neolithic pottery and Corinthian imports. The upper floor houses the room of the sacred areas and the room of the archaic and classical city with the necropolises. In a 16th-century tower next to the museum, underwater finds are displayed, above all stone anchors and lead ingots recovered in the bay of Naxos and Taormina.
Highlights
- Arula Heidelberg–Naxos (530 BC) with confronted sphinxes
- Architectural slabs and silen-mask antefixes
- Stretch of the walls of ancient Naxos in the garden
- Underwater finds in the 16th-century tower (stone and lead anchors)
- Neolithic pottery and Corinthian imports
Permanent exhibition
- Collezione archeologica di Naxos – Chronological and topographical route from prehistory to the archaic and classical city, with architectural revetments, the arula Heidelberg–Naxos and the underwater finds.
- Operated by
- Parco archeologico di Naxos e Taormina (Regione Siciliana)
- Visitors per year
- approx. 1,133,656
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €5 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €2.5050% reduction for EU citizens aged 18 to 25 (according to regional rules) |
| Children & teens | freefree up to age 17 · Free admission for under-18s according to regional rules. |
The price refers to the Museo archeologico di Naxos. The Arsenale navale di Naxos can be visited by booking and is free of charge.
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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