In Monsummano Terme, in Valdinievole (Pistoia), there is a special kind of museum, an exhibiting trail that, in 2001, obtained a special mention as "Museum of the city and the territory" from the European museum forum, which gives prizes for the museums of the year.
Monsummano's museum represents an interesting example of the interaction between Man and environment, historical and cultural landscapes which have seen the evolvement of an area in relation to urban realities: towns and businesses. A trail that articulates through ten sections distinguished both for contents and for exhibiting material: we go from archaeological findings to photographic documents and objects of art.
"Environment and history", the first sector, provides a frame of the exhibiting structure identifying the naturalistic history and human settlements in the territory, the development of productive activities and their consequence on the territory. A well-defined picture can be derived from interactive panels, maps and geographical maps highlighting development and human settlements in the Padule di Fucecchio area.
In the two sections "Archaeological" and "Geology and palaeontology" there are archaeological findings, as well as fossils and samples of the rocky material surrounding the town of Valdinievole, and they bear witness to settlement dynamics and urbanisation staring from protohistory up to medieval times, with the particular three-dimensional reconstruction of the Monsummano castle.
There is also an area dedicated to the "Padule di Fucecchio", a important connection and sustenance route for the thermal city, tied to the section "Grand-ducal farms", where there are images bearing witness to the development of towns and business around the Padule area.
"Productive and industrial activities" and "thermal activity" represents a further stage in Monsummano's city history: the trades and activities that have characterised the economical development of the area.
Finally two sections dedicated to local artistic feedback: "Sacred art and popular religiosity" and "Treasure of Maria Santissima della Fontenuova", through images, documents, sacred furnishings, goldsmith works and prestigious fabrics of historical value the community's evolutionary reality is underlined. And the concluding section "Valdinievole felix", which collects documentary and iconographic material of the transformation the urban and cultural development of Monsummano Terme and Valdinievole underwent from the beginning of the 19th century.
Museo della cittą e del territorio
Where: Osteria dei Pellegrini - piazza Martini
Winter opening times: Monday 9 am to 12 pm, Wednesday to Sunday 3.30 pm to 6.30 pm, closed Tuesdays.
Summer opening times: Monday 9 am to 12 pm, Wednesday to Sunday 4 pm to 7 pm, closed Tuesdays.
Entrance ticket: 2,6 euro full and 1,5 reductions
Info: 0572-954463
March.2002
Museo della cittą e territorio
Padule di Fucecchio
Province of Pistoia
