Civic Archaeology Museum in the Ore District of Rio nell'Elba

The Ore District Archaeology Museum is in Rio nell'Elba, on the eastern side of the island, below the panoramic viewpoint of Barcocaio, on the left hand side of Piazza del Popolo.

The museum covers the history of the eastern side of the island, from the III millennium BC to the Middle Ages, and is closely linked to the mineral ores.

Among the oldest pieces on show: the Aeneolithic funeral objects from the nearby Grotto of San Giuseppe, burial ground of a civilization from about the III Millenium B.C.

Several jar fiascos and bowls of different sizes, and a flint arrowhead, jasper and other hunting and fighting bone and bronze objects, all evidence of a civilization we know little about since the area where they actually lived has not yet been discovered.

Also of great interst are the several putty fragments of the Roman Villa of Capo Castello (I century AD approximately) on the promontory of Cavo, in the Commune of Rio Marina, high up above the sea and no doubt home to the patrician Romans.

Collection of the Inhabitants of Rio, a collection that the last miners of Rio nell'Elba decided to give to the Commune so they be used as memoirs of the history of the mines and also of the lives of the locals, very closely linked to years of hard work.

The Museum is open to the public from April to September, but during the winter months it is open only on request and only for groups.