In the aftermath of the catastrophic earthquake of 1908, which destroyed the city, Paolo Orsi developed the idea of building a large National Institute as a permanent museum dedicated to ancient Greece in Reggio Calabria. The project took shape in 1954 with the merger of local collections and state ones.
The new permanent exhibition, which originated from the remodeling of the building that started in 2009, features 220 displays and is divided into four levels, which tell the story of the human population in prehistoric times until Roman Calabria, in chronological order. The visit begins on the second floor (level A – Prehistory and Protohistory, the Age of Metals), continues on the first floor (level B – Cities and sanctuaries of Ancient Greece), on the mezzanine (level C – Necropolis and daily life of Ancient Greece : Sybaris and Croton, Hipponion, Kaulon, Ciro Laos; and ends on the ground floor (level D – Reggio), where it is placed the room of Riace and Porticello Bronzes, in a setting equipped with an air-conditioning and an anti-seismic system, which can be accessed after a brief stop at the grape room and at the antipollution filter area. The floor of the basement (level E) is reserved to temporary exhibitions. In 1981, the section intended to receive the famous Bronzes, the two statues discovered in 1972 in the Riace Marina (Reggio Calabria) seabed, along with the so-called bronze sculpture Head of a Philosopher, recovered in the Strait of Messina, in Porticello (Villa San Giovanni), and the so-called Head of Basel, has been prepared. These are the findings more known throughout the world, although they are not the only precious examples of the history of Calabria. In fact, as with the Museum of Bronzes, there are exhibitions related to a broad time span, from Prehistory to the Roman Age, some of them unique in their beauty, grandeur or condition. In the MArRC there are even traces of the first presence of Homo erectus in our peninsula, about a million years ago. From the important archaeological site of the Grotta of the Romito of Papasidero, two skeletons, which date back to the Paleolithic, were found. Not far away, in the same cave, a stone was found with an engraving of the Bos primigenius Taurus (dated to 12,000 years ago), one of the first and oldest examples of stone art in Italy, whose cast is on display at the Museum. Since the Neolithic Age, there have come down to us wonderful daily-use tools, such as axes and knives used in agriculture, or objects for female beauty, like ointment and a beautiful bag of cosmetics for makeup, which still contain the remains of powders and eyeshadows (up to 4000 years ago). Jewels and tools of work of women in the age of bronze and iron (the second millennium to 700 BC), along with pottery and various metal objects…
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Opening days
Tuesday to Sunday and April 1, 2024
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Opening times
9.00 – 20.00, last admission 19.30
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Closing
Monday
December 25, 2024 -
Extra Opening times
Tuesday 17 June 2025
the museum will be exceptionally open in the evening, with access to the rooms and terrace - subject to availability - from 8:00 pm to 11:00 pm (last admission at 10:30 pm),The entrance ticket will cost €5.00.
Free admission as required by law remains valid.
Tickets can be purchased exclusively on site at the museum ticket office. - Web MArRC- Museo Archeologico Nazionale Reggio Calabria
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Feature List
- Wheelchair accessible
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Accessibility
- Access for the disabled is on the platform outside the Museum. Access to the levels of permanent and temporary collections is possible via lifts. Access to the Necropolis can be accompanied by the staff.
- The LIS and IS video guide service for the deaf is available at the ticket office for a video-guided visit to the Museum collections.
Services
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Didactics for schools
Reservation for schools:
available in Italian
from Monday to Friday, from 9.00 to 17.00: 848 082 408 and from mobile and abroad +39 0639967200
edu@coopculture.it -
Visits
Reservations for Groups
available in Italian, English
from Monday to Friday, from 9.00 to 17.00: +39 639967450
tour@coopculture.it -
Audioguide
Purchase from App: €4.99
Rental at the ticket office: €6.00
The version for the blind and visually impaired was created in collaboration with the S. Alessio – Margherita di Savoia company providing services to visually impaired people. Compared to the other, this version also has the spatial indications necessary to be able to move correctly along the audio-guided route.
available in Italian, English, French, German, Russian
Where
Piazza De Nava, 26 - Reggio Calabria
Transportation
By plane
Having arrived at Reggio Calabria airport, a shuttle bus will bring you close to the Museum. The 102, 105, 121, 122, 125 lines stop in Viale Amendola. By car, follow the signs for the A3 motorway northbound, continue until the exit of motorway “Reggio Calabria Porto,” follow the bypass until you have entered the city, and continue to Viale Genovese Zerbi. When you reach the roundabout of Pianna independence, follow the roundabout and continue along Via Vollaro (the road going uphill). Immediately on the left will be the Museum.
From the train station
The nearest station is “Reggio Calabria Lido”; at the exit is in Piazza Indipendenza, a two minute walk from the Museum. After crossing the square, take Via Vollaro (the road going uphill) and immediately on the left is the Museum.
For those arriving at the station “Reggio Calabria”, the exit is located in Piazza Garibaldi. After crossing the square, turn left onto via Bixio; continue on Calle Pepe; then turn right onto Corso Vittorio Emanuele (via Marina Alta). At the end of the course, turn right into Via Vollaro (the road going uphill) and immediately take a left at the Museum. There is also a bus service from central station: lines 1, 2, 12, 14, 108, 110, 127.
From the port
On foot follow the road uphill opposite the exit of airboats, then continue along Viale Genovese Zerbi on the right. Once you have arrived at Rotunda di Piazza Indipendenza, follow the route of the roundabout to the left and continue along Via Vollaro (the road going uphill). Immediately on the left is the Museum.
From the A3 Salerno-Reggio Calabria motorway
By car, follow the signs for the exit north of the port, then follow signs for the ring road towards the Center. Once you enter the city, continue along Viale Genovese Zerbi. On arriving at Rotunda di Pianna Indipendenza, follow the roundabout and continue along Via Vollaro (the road going uphill), and the Museum will be on the left.
Please be informed that, due to a verification and monitoring campaign of the Riace Bronzes, the Riace Bronzes room will be closed to the public on the following dates:
April 16; May 28-29-30; June 18; July 2; September 17 and 18.
Visitors who purchase a ticket for these dates will be able to use their ticket on another date to access the Riace Bronzes room, within 30 days from the initial visit date, by presenting their admission ticket at the ticket office.
