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The Virtual Archaeological Civic Museum and the antiquities of Narce
The MAVNA (Virtual Archaeological Civic Museum of Narce) is located in Mazzano Romano. The museum has a clear purpose: to bring back — at least virtually — the artefacts from the ancient site of Narce.
Excavations, sales and a heritage scattered around the world
Between 1889 and 1902, excavation campaigns in the territory of Narce unearthed funerary assemblages, some of which were purchased by the Italian State, and others sold on the antiquarian market, later acquired by museums in Europe (Louvre, British Museum, Danish National Museum) and the United States (Smithsonian National Museum, Pennsylvania Museum and Chicago Field Museum). In 2012 the Municipality established the MAVNA to virtually reassemble that heritage through agreements with international museum institutions.
Virtual reconstructions and historical archives
The museum works with reproductions of archaeological materials, architectural elements from the ancient city, videos, 3D virtual reality and digitised archival documents. For collaborating foreign museums, the MAVNA also serves as an opportunity to certify legal ownership of the objects they display.
A museum created to protect the territory
After the excavations ended in the early 1900s, the territory of Mazzano Romano and Calcata suffered devastation at the hands of illegal diggers. The museum was also born for this reason: to teach new generations to respect the local archaeological heritage, create an information centre dedicated to Faliscan culture and promote tourism in the area, in partnership with the Treja Valley Regional Park and the Superintendency for the Archaeological Heritage of Southern Etruria.
