Housed since 1969 in a building on Via Risorgimento, in the historic center of the city of Crotone, the National Archaeological Museum is one of the richest and most significant in Calabria due to the abundance of displayed materials and their intrinsic historical and artistic value. Located just a short walk from the Castle of Charles V, the National Museum is arranged over two floors, with an exhibition garden at the entrance. Among the most important artifacts are the findings from the excavation area of ancient Kroton and the mythological Heraion Lakinion, on the promontory of Capo Colonna, where the Archaeological Park of the same name is located.
In the small external garden on the ground floor, at the entrance to the museum, there are two large stone thermal basins, originating from the cargo of a ship found in the waters of the Marine Reserve near Punta Scifo. The cargo came from Asia Minor and is dated to the 3rd century AD. On the ground floor of the museum, there is a small bookshop next to the ticket office. The artifacts are displayed in chronological order, starting with the prehistoric phase featuring axes and lithic weapons, a human skull, and agricultural tools. The Iron Age section offers rich funerary goods and artifacts from the provincial area of Crotone. A section dedicated to Greek pottery presents vases and amphorae of rare craftsmanship, distinguished by origin: Corinthian, Chalcidian, Attic, and Italiote. On the first floor of the National Archaeological Museum, the findings made in the urban area of Crotone are displayed according to topographical criteria, with charts and plans that precisely reproduce the exact locations of the discoveries and the current city excavations. An entire hall is dedicated to artifacts from the famous Sanctuary of Hera Lacinia, and to various votive objects found there, which make up the renowned Treasure of the goddess. The Treasure of Hera consists of precious votive objects in gold, bronze, and marble, found near the sanctuary during excavations in the Archaeological Park of Capo Colonna. Among these objects, the splendid Golden Diadem dedicated to the goddess Hera Lacinia, protector of the people of Crotone and beyond, stands out for its historical and artistic interest, as does the mysterious and even more intriguing Nuragic Bronze Boat from the 7th century BC, the origin of which remains uncertain and its history shrouded in mystery.
Another section of the National Archaeological Museum is dedicated to the discoveries from ancient Krimisa, today’s Cirò Marina, featuring a series of sandstone capitals from the Temple of Apollo Aleo, as well as votive terracottas and various decorative marble pieces from doors and beams originating from public buildings.
Informations about the National Archaeological Museum of Crotone
Via Risorgimento, 14
88074 Crotone (Crotone)
096223082 0962905625
https://www.archeocalabria.beniculturali.it/archeovirtualtour/calabriaweb/crotone5.htm
Source: MIBACT
