Archaeological Civic Museum of Chianciano Terme
Etruscan burials on display: pottery, grave goods and canopic jars
The Museo Civico Archeologico delle Acque in Chianciano Terme, housed inside a former granary in the heart of the historic center, collects valuable archaeological finds discovered in the municipal area and can boast the most important collection of Etruscan canopic jars (i.e., cinerary vessels in human shape) in the world. The exhibition opens with a number of reconstructions of burials and displays of grave goods, including pottery, ceramics and amphorae, dating between the 6th and 5th centuries B.C., the period of maximum development for the city.
The collection of canopic jars from excavations in the necropolis of Tolle is very rich, while evidence of the later Hellenistic age includes alabaster cinerary urns and a series of wine-making rooms, recovered from a farm discovered near Poggio Bacherinae reconstructed here. Also belonging to the same period is the monumental terracotta pediment, which adorned a sacred building in the Astrone valley, not far from the source of the Fucoli and dedicated to a health deity.
The museum also documents the exploitation of Chianciano's rich springs in Roman times, when luxurious villas and large spa buildings sprang up, in which even the poet Horace is said to have come to treat himself.
In addition, the museum is perfectly structured for a visit by people with walking difficulties and has set up a small "tactile" path, which can enable the blind to enjoy some pieces.
Thus, in some rooms, Etruscan ceramics and objects are displayed under the banner of the beautiful motto "forbidden not to touch"; all, accompanied by explanatory plaques in Braille. A very concrete way to open a window to everyone into the mysterious world of our ancient Tuscan ancestors.
Accessibility information: museoetrusco.it
