Museo archeologico della civiltà Messapica di Vaste, Poggiardo

The Archaeological Museum of the Messapian Civilization presents along its exhibition path a succession of testimonies that lead the observer through a suggestive itinerary, along which one can relive the period in which the Messapian Vaste reached its highest level of development, starting from the mid-4th century BC, through the rich quantity of recovered artifacts. One can indeed observe the rich furnishings of the sarcophagus tombs, the beautiful kraters, basins, strigils, as well as the typical “”trozzelle”” with geometric or floral decorations of the female burials. Numerous are also the architectural elements, among which a capital decorated with rosettes, part of a funerary column, stands out for its importance. The museum is arranged chronologically: from the places of worship of the archaic and Hellenistic periods, reconstructed in the first rooms, up to the Middle Ages. Notable are the “”little treasure”” consisting of 150 finely minted silver staters and the 17 “”tesserae lussoriae”” in ivory, a rare playing instrument from the Roman era.

An accurate virtual reconstruction, projected on a large screen, allows the visitor an authentic immersion back in time, making the visit to this gem of Apulian archaeology unforgettable.