Etruscan Museum
by iandsmith
Volterra is what I would term a fringe town. It's not quite on the beaten path but some tourists are aware of the place and make their way to it.
Having missed out on two Etruscan displays, including Cortona's reportedly good museum (because I was lost again and arrived 10 minutes before they closed), I was determined to see at least one. I was not disappointed, Museo Guarnacci has much to recommend it, including multi-lingual audio guides, friendly staff and a display that lived up to its promise. With over 600 cinerary urns to choose from they can afford to show you the best and, even some in odd ways.
It was interesting to note that most were set patterns and so many are just recurring themes along Grecian lines. One of the most notable exceptions is pictured here, this being one of their famed exhibits.
An extraordinary tale surrounds their lift. "But they haven't got one", I hear you cry. That is true, the problem being that when they started excavating so they could put a lift in for the handicapped an ancient road and ruins were unearthed, a relatively common problem in Italy. Now they don't have a lift but an interesting sidelight that is covered in glass along with artifacts from the tomb of Guerriero, a general from the Bronze Age, also unearthed.
Piazza dei Priori
by Cristian_Uluru
Piazza dei Priori was created in the 11th century with the construction of the representative buildings of the civil power. On the sides of the square you can see the Palazzo Episcopale, Palazzo Incontri and Palazzo Pretorio.
Museums are Plenty
by BruceDunning
There are a lot of museums for such a small town. The gammet is the Etruscan and Civic museums, but also there are a couple of palaces to visits of parts of the inside. Palazzo Incontri is at the front part of entering the town, the rest are closer to the rear going down the main via. The Civic museum is combined with the art works of the town. Etruscan relics/artifacts are in the Guarnaci museum dating back form 1761, and named after the founder/collector.
A twist of fate
by iandsmith
The visit of the museum begins with the early Iron Age IX-VIII centuries B.C.. In Room I burial goods from the necropolis of the Badia and the Guerrucia excavated in 1892/1898. In Room I bis treasures from a Warriors Tomb have recently been added to the collection after an accidental find in 1996 of a rare exquisitely manufactured bronze crested helmet , a laminated bronze flask and items pertaining to a warrior.
It's a wonderful story where they decided to put a lift in for handicapped people and started digging. Guess what was under the museum! Today some of the diggings are clearly visible beneath a glass floor and, no, they still don't have a lift!
Via Matteotti
by Cristian_Uluru
Via Matteotti is located in front of Piazza Martiri della Libertà. In this street you can see many houses-towers and many palaces built int the 13th century. There you can see Casa Torre Allegretto, Palazzetto Rossi e Miranceli and Palazzo Maffei.
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A vista from on high
The pieces which caught my eye
And here they are on the roadside, a short walk
Panoramic view of Volterra
