M
useo. The National Museum of Este.
Museo Nazionale Atestino
Palazzo Mocenigo
The Museo Nazionale Atestino (National Museum of Atestine Artifacts) in Este is one of the most important archaeological museums of Northern Italy. It is located in the beautiful EZZELINO MEDIEVAL WALLS-CARRARESE CASTLE-PALAZZO MOCENIGO architectonical complex, which represents the historical-architectonical synthesis of a very long period of the town's history, from the Middle Ages to the Modern Era. The rich collections displayed inside the museum document the historical events which took place in Este during the wide range of time before the Middle Ages.
The National Museum of Este, which was inaugurated in 1902, is housed inside the beautiful Mocenigo Palace, which from the 16th to the 18th century was the mansion of the Venetian noble Mocenigo family, whose splendours are celebrated by Giulio Carpioni's frescoes (17th c.) decorating the residence.
The collections The museum’s collections are arranged following a strictly chronologic order, from the oldest findings to the most recent ones. The thematic assemblage of the artefacts helps to distinguish those belonging to daily life from those related to funerary customs and religious practices. In order to respect these exhibition standards the tour of the museum starts on the first floor of the palace, where
pre-protohistoric collections are displayed, and ends on the ground floor with the Roman collections and a small but prestigious Medieval-Modern section. In each room easy mobile panels in four languages (Italian, English, French and German) facilitate the tour and illustrate the different themes related to the displayed findings.
The findings illustrate the evolution of the uses, of the funerary practices and of the beliefs and religious rites of this ancient people during the Bronze Age. The civilization of the ancient Veneti in Este developped between the 10th and the 3rd century BC. and throve along a paleo river-bed of the river Adige (Athesis), which flowed through this territory until 589. Along the river banks the ancient inhabitants of Este lived in close contact with the magnificent Etruscan civilization and at the same time had relationships with transalpine and Central-Eastern Europe culture. Later on they peacefully cohabited with some groups of Celtic immigrants (5th-3rd century BC.) and were finally assimilated by the by then predominant Roman population (from the 3rd century BC to the 3rd century AD circa).
First Floor: Pre-Protohistoric Section This section is arranged across 5 rooms, three of which (Rooms I, II and IV) have beautiful vault ceilings decorated by Giulio Carpioni’s frescoes depicting the virtues of the Mocenigo family (17th c.). The tour starts from Room I, which shows the most ancient findings pertaining to Este and its surroundings, especially the Euganean Hills. They range from the Palaeolithic to the Bronze Age. Remarkable artefacts document the importance of the Neolithic period, the technological progress from the Prehistoric stone-working techniques to the use of metals and the different settlement systems of prehistoric man, from simple shelters to huts and palafittes. The most significant aspects of this section are evident in Rooms II, III and IV, which are respectively dedicated to SETTLEMENTS, NECROPOLISES and SANCTUARIES of the ancient Veneti of Este.
In Room II, which is devoted to settlements and daily life, there is a beaten clay floor, which was used for the preparation and cooking of food. In this room there are a great many examples of stoves, pots, pans and firedogs –the Ram-headed ones are particularly noteworthy. The production of pottery for domestic uses and other kinds of handicrafts are well documented by the findings displayed inside the show-cases. Bronzes were the highest expression of the ancient Venetic skilled craftmanship: vases but also items of clothing and weapons, with the typical embossed or in relief decoration, which was the characteristic feature of the ‘situla art’, the outstanding example of which is the famous SITULA BENVENUTI (Situla= conical vessel), the gem of Room III, the one dedicated to Necropolises. Thanks to its extraordinarily rich iconography and decoration, which represents daily life scenes, athletic games and wars among domestic, wild and mithological animals, scholars consider the Situla Benvenuti an epic narration of the ancient Veneti. Of great interest is also the elaboration of a native ALPHABET, which was used to express the Venetic language, a language of IndoEuropean origins used since the 6th
century BC. This alphabet was used in the religious and funerary fields especially in ex-voto and funerary monuments, to make these object speak on behalf of the persons the inscription was dedicated by. The magic-ritual sphere is also very fascinating. In the most important sanctuary dedicated to the patron
goddess of the town, SAINATE REITIA, besides religious and ritual activities there was also a cultural centre where the use of writing was taught, a privilege of the sacerdotal class, to which also women had access. Evidences of this are to be found in Room IV, where the alphabetic tablets and the styluses with numerous Venetic inscriptions testify to the fact that the sanctuary was a writing centre too. This Room also shows beautiful examples of bronze sculptures and decorated tablets representing worshippers: men and women, young and adult people, brides and warriors, who not only attended the shrine dedicated to Reitia, the most important shrine in Este, but also the other places of cult which surrounded and protected the town.
Ground floor: Roman Section Romanization (i.e. the passage from the Pre-Roman Veneti to the Roman culture) in Este was gradual and peaceful. The progressive shift to the new culture, which started with the extension of the AEMILIA MINOR and dates back to 175 BC is documented by many sources: the boundary stones, which by order of the Roman Senate defined the boundaries between Este, Padua and Vicenza, and the great number of epigraphs with no funerary collocation (Room VI). The later development of ATESTE (the Roman Este), which was first granted the Latin citizenship (beginning of the 1st c. BC) and was later granted full Roman rights and added to the list of the ROMILIA tribe (between 49 and 42 BC), becoming the seat of Augustus’ Veterans, the survivors of the famous Azio battle of the year
31 BC, are widely documented by the monumental finds coming from the public area (Room VII), by the funerary equipments from necropolises (Room VIII); by everyday life tools coming from the most simple settlements (Room IX), up to the mosaics and the frescoes of a big DOMUS dating back to the Augustean Age (Room X). Room XI displays, among different groups of materials, a painting by Giovanni Cima da Conegliano, representing a Madonna and Child (1504) and a rich collection of ceramics dating from the Middle Ages to the Modern Age, all of them produced by local manufacturers. They attest that the famous ceramics production in Este has continued more or less without interruption from prehistoric times to our days. A lacunose fresco painting, depicting a Crucifixion, and belonging to Giotto’s school (14th c.) decorates the staircase leading to the first floor.
The Museum and its activities The museum was restructured in the early eighties and was opened again to the public in 1984 with an entirely reorganized layout. The tour winds through 11 Rooms with clear informative displays; the new display allows easy updating following the continuous stream of new discoveries and studies on the territory’s history. Visitors are welcomed at the Information Desk and Ticket Office, which are located in the entrance hall. Here there are also booking services and a display of books, which can facilitate the visit
of the museum. Visits and activities with professional staff can be organized for school groups, by prior booking. Inside the small room to the right of the entrance hall there is a computer stall, which, by exploiting virtual reality offers the possibility to make a thorough study of the museum’s contents. A lift for disabled people gives access to the collections displayed on the first floor. The complex museal system is completed by the museum offices which are located on the ground floor and on the first floor of the palace: the DIRECTOR’S OFFICE, the ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES, the ARCHIVE, the wide STORE and the annexed LABORATORY for the restoration of the finds, and the ACTIVITY ROOM.
Realized with the contribution of:
MUSEO NAZIONALE ATESTINO Via G. Negri - 35042 Este (Padova) Tel. +39 0429 2085 - Fax +39 0429 603996 atestino.archeopd@arti.beniculturali.it
Opening Times Opening times: 9am-8pm daily. Closed on January 1st, May 1st and December 25th.
Tickets
Full € 2,00; Reduced € 1,00 (citizens of the E.U. aged 18-25, teachers of public schools). Entrance is free for European citizens under 18 and over 65. Guided tours and school activities, by prior booking.
TREVISO AIRPORT
MOTORWAY EXITS
Information:
TOWNS
IAT Este Via Guido Negri, 9/a Tel.: +39 0429 600462 Fax: +39 0429 611105 www.comune.este.pd.it e-mail: iateste@virgilio.it
EUGANEAN HILLS VENEZIA AIRPORT
DIRECTION MILANO
How to reach the Museum: • Motorway Padova - Bologna, exit “Monselice”. • National Road Adriatica no. 16 and Regional Road Padana Inferiore no. 10. • Railway Padova-Mantova, Este station.
MOTO RWAY A4
M
DIRECTION TRIESTE A4 RWAY MOTO
VERONA AIRPORT
The museum is fully accessible to wheelchair users. Free Cloakroom. Computer stall. Guided tours and school activities (pre-booking required).
DIRECTION BOLOGNA
Riviera dei Mugnai, 8 35137 Padova Tel. +39 049 8767911 Fax +39 049 650794 www.turismopadova.it www.turismotermeeuganee.it
Provincia di Padova
Comune di Este
© Photos: Museo Nazionale Atestino, Federico Meneghetti, Renato Tuzza.
Regione del Veneto
October 2007
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MOTORWAY A13
Museum Facilities: