It stands on the top of the acropolis of Chieti , the highest part of the city, from which the northern slopes of the Majella massif can be seen rising.

The area was leveled in the mid-19th century to create a parade ground, then converted into a sports field. During the last two decades of the 20th century it was the subject of excavation and this long research made it possible to bring to light the remains of a sanctuary (2nd century BC) - which included three temples - and the lower part of the amphitheater (1st century AD) .

The museum building, designed by the Abruzzo architect Ettore de Lellis, was inaugurated on 18 November 2000 with the aim of allowing the adequate protection, valorisation and use of the temples, the amphitheater and the finds recovered during the excavations of the latter , as well as artefacts from the collection of the scholar Vincenzo Zecca , from the Antiquarium Teatino and from the archaeological investigations of Chieti and the Marrucina area. The very broad chronological span covered goes from the Paleolithic to 1800.

Outside, the visitor finds a modern structure which, despite exploiting vast spaces on multiple levels, has a deliberately non-monumental impact, in which a pleasant contamination between ancient and modern can be perceived.

Inside, the visitor can choose between three different museum itineraries , called " The beginning of urban history ", " From Rome to yesterday " and " The land of the Marrucini ".