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Archaeological Museum of Agro Falisco and Forte Sangallo

The Archaeological Museum of Agro Falisco and Forte Sangallo is located inside the Forte Sangallo, an imposing fortified fortress of Civita Castellana, one of the most important and best preserved military works created by the Papal State between the end of the 1400s and the beginning of the 1500s. For centuries it has defended and made the city of Civita Castellana impregnable, representing the presence of the papal power in the territory. Its construction began by the will of Alexander VI Borgia in 1495, a few years after he became pope. It was part of the larger project for the improvement and strengthening of the defensive fortresses that surrounded the Papal State. The famous architect and military engineer Antonio da Sangallo the Elder designed and started the construction of the ambitious work. The fortress will remain in history as one of its greatest masterpieces. The work was completed by Giuliano Della Rovere, future Julius II, who entrusted the construction site to the architect Antonio da Sangallo the Younger. Two basic characteristics make the fortress an innovative model of the very early Italian Renaissance: the defensive systems, adapted to the changed techniques of warfare that now provided for the use of firearms and its contemporary function of papal residence, since it incorporates rooms on the noble floor for residential use intended for the Pope and his court. It will remain a papal residence until the early 1800s, later becoming a political prison and a military prison and from 1905 the district house of the Kingdom of Italy. Given the extraordinary wealth of archaeological materials found in the area, today it is the seat of the Archaeological Museum of Agro Falisco. The current exhibition itinerary of the Archaeological Museum of Agro Falisco is divided into nine rooms, located on the noble floor of the building, exactly in the rooms that arise as the papal apartments. There is documented the rich ceramic production of the main center of the territory, Falerii Veteres, today's Civita Castellana, with evidence ranging from the most ancient finds to graffiti and plastic decorations, to those of the fourth and third century BC, made with black paint, silver and red-figure, the latter present with works of the highest quality. There is no shortage of objects from the various sanctuaries of the city and the area. In addition to the architectural and votive terracottas, there are significant testimonies and finds relating to the spheres of influence of the various cults, including those of Apollo, Minerva, Juno, Mercury, and other associated divinities. These cults can be documented since the earliest stages of the development of the Agro Falisco and the urban center of Falerii Veteres. No less representative of the archaeological wealth of the Faliscan territory are the finds from other important sites, such as Corchiano and Narce. From the latter center, in particular from the tombs dating back to the eighth and seventh centuries. BC, it comes from valuable bronze pottery and some of the oldest imported Greek ceramics.

Timetable and tickets

Address

Via del Forte
01033 Civita Castellana

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