A small yet significant jewel born around an ancient vessel
The discovery of a protohistoric dugout canoe in Lake Bolsena in the waters of Bisentina Island in 1989 led to the creation, in 2010, of the museum, which began to tell the story of inland navigation in antiquity. It also houses other finds from the lake and more recent boats from various lake sites such as Bracciano, Fondi, and Posta Fibreno, tracing the slow evolution of naval architecture in lakes and rivers, from the 8th century BC to the 20th century.
It has been 21 years since the discovery of the dugout canoe until its presentation to the public. The restoration and exhibition were carried out under the supervision of the Superintendence for the Archaeological Heritage of Southern Etruria and the Municipal Administration, with the presence of some mayors among whom the current Mario Fanelli. The final result was a pioneering technological setup, featuring projections on sliding doors, wooden model reconstructions, multimedia rooms, and informative panels with in-depth comparisons, naval architecture, and navigation in antiquity, with the care of the Arx Cooperative, under the supervision of archaeologist Patrizia Petitti.
Oggi, dopo un periodo di chiusura del museo, si sta riallestendo cercando di recuperare tutto questo e mantenendo il focus sulla navigazione nelle acque interne fondamentale per la conoscenza sulle attivita’ di pesca, sulle comunicazioni e sui traffici di merci sin da tempi antichissimi, curandone sia gli aspetti archeologici sia gli aspetti antropologici.
Today, after a period of closure, the museum is being reinstalled, aiming to recover all this heritage while maintaining a focus on inland navigation, fundamental for understanding ancient fishing activities, communication, and trade routes. The museum emphasizes both archaeological and anthropological aspects, highlighting the history of humans: an important, welcoming museum open to new archaeological and anthropological discoveries related to human history, to navigation and fishing.
Bibliography:
- A.M.Conti, E. Conti, Il Museo della Navigazione nelle Acque Interne di Capodimonte in P. Petitti (a cura di), Sul filo della corrente. La navigazione nelle acque interne in Italia centrale dalla Preistoria all’eta’ moderna, 2009, pp. 167-173
- C. Pisu, Relazione presentata al Museo Nazionale di Villa Giulia, 1 febbraio 2018 visibile al link
