Geological and Landslide Museum

What it is

The Geological and Landslide Museum (Museo Geologico e delle Frane) explains why Civita is falling down and what is being done to stop it. It is on the second floor of the Palazzo Alemanni, in Piazza San Donato, the village's central square. It is a short visit, of about 30 to 45 minutes, and makes sense of everything you have just seen from the bridge.

What you see

The rooms are interactive and tell the story of the terrain in order:

• The ancient sea. More than a million years ago the whole area was under a shallow sea. With models and cross-sections of the ground you see how that seabed produced the clays, sands and conglomerates that form the base of the outcrop.
• The volcanoes. On top were deposited the tuffs and ashes from the eruptions of the Volsini volcanic complex, the same one that formed Lake Bolsena. It is the hard rock on which Civita was built.
• Erosion and the calanchi. The mix of hard rock on soft clay means that water and time open deep, almost bare gullies, the calanchi, and that the edge of the outcrop breaks away.
• Landslides and monitoring. Photographs, materials and studies on the historic collapses, the instability that continues today and the monitoring and consolidation works that try to keep the village standing.

There are rocks and fossils, and panels worth reading calmly: if you are interested in geology, it is more interesting than its size suggests.

Opening hours

Sources do not agree, so call before you go. Civita's official website gives, for summer (1 June to 31 August), Tuesday to Sunday, from 9:30 to 13:30 and from 14:00 to 18:30. The Ministry of Culture listing gives 10:00 to 12:30 and 14:00 to 18:00 every day, closed on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January. No reservation is needed. The museum's phone number is +39 328 665 7205.

Price

The Ministry of Culture listing gives €3 for the museum, paid on top of the €5 Civita ticket. The same listing also mentions €5 as the full price, so confirm the amount at the ticket office.

Getting there

The museum is inside Civita, so you first have to leave the car in Bagnoregio, pay the entry to the village and cross the bridge on foot. From the Santa Maria gate, Piazza San Donato is two minutes' walk.

With children and accessibility

The models and the interactive section work with school-age children, especially after crossing the bridge and seeing the gullies. For the youngest it is short and quickly done. The museum is on a second floor and the official sources do not say whether there is a lift: if you have reduced mobility, ask by phone.

When to fit it in

It is best to go in halfway through your visit to Civita, when you have already seen the edges of the outcrop and before returning to the Bagnoregio viewpoint, from where you will look at the valley with different eyes.