Archiepiscopal Museum, Ravenna

Many visitors unintentionally rush through this museum just to get to the famous Chapel of St. Andrew. However, the Museo Arcivescovile is a world-class attraction in its own right. It is a modern, well-curated space that houses some of the most delicate and precious artifacts in Ravenna. If the basilicas show you the scale of Byzantine art, this museum shows you the detail.

Located on the first floor of the former Palazzo dell'Arcivescovado, this fantastic museum houses valuable objects, some of which originated from the ancient early Christian cathedral of Ursiana, which was replaced by an 18th-century building. Among them are stone fragments, goldwork, and, most notably, the Cattedra di Massimiano (Chair of Maximian), a work by 6th-century Byzantin artists, considered one of the most important ivory sculptures of all times. The exhibition displayed in the museum is very fascinating. To the museum’s collection belong some objects of extreme beauty, such as the silver Cross of archbishop Agnello, a marble plate depicting the Easter calendar and a headless statue from the Byzantine era, all from the 5th century, which maybe portrayed Emperor Justinian. A small picture gallery – the so-called “Sala delle Pianete” (Hall of the Planets) – also hosts works dating back between 1500 and 1800, a collection of sacred vestments datable to the 11th or 12th century and the Sala della Torre Salustra (Room of the Salustra Tower), which once was the final section of the Aqua Traiana aqueduct and the starting point of the pipes for the urban distribution of water.

The place was going through and explanation which will probably last about 2-3 months but it was kinda big, there's a lot to see though it lacks explanation. I only gave it 5 stars because one part was absolutely beautiful otherwise it would've been 3 stars. The was a lot it see. All of the information was also translated into braille. All of the texts were bilingual (Italian and English) and I believe that the same is for the braille part too. The place is absolutely not stroller not wheelchair friendly. There are stairs and if you're bringing your baby, you have to put the stroller next the stairs. The had a small gift shop that I didn't check out but it was literally like most if not all other ones in Ravenna

Excellent museum and chapel. The highlight of the museum is the small Chapel of San Andrea, one of the several gems of Ravenna mosaics from the 5th and 6th centuries. We visited the museum with our combination Ravenna Mosaic ticket. We visited on a cold winter's day when there were very few visitors. In summer it's probably crowded. The chapel is beautiful, as are all the buildings with mosaics open to visitors in Ravenna that we saw. Other highlights of the Museum include the exquisite 6th-century ivory-decorated throne of Bishop Maximian, and a marble slab from the same period recording the calculation of the dates of Easter. The museum would be fascinating for these alone, but it contains many other exhibits well worth seeing. Highly recommended.

Now I know why there are so many visitors!! Not that it was crowded, but the age and history was a wonderful relaxing experience! We took about 40 min total here. Could've stayed and reflected on life a little bit longer if you wanted to. Beautiful grounds and flying buttresses were nice to see up close and that's all before entering the sanctuary! The reflection style marble stones on a majority of the inside pillars was a discovery in and of itself!! The acoustics would've been nice to hear...

Do not miss - even it it is only for the stunning little chapel inside.

A very interesting museum in the centre of Ravenna. It offers a glimpse on Roman life in Ravenna. It is rather small but is filled with historic objects and portions of mosaics.

After 6 weeks in Italy we have seen so many museums. This was actually took us by surprise. It was small and felt very intimate. There weren't too many items and too many pieces of information to read that we felt overwhelmed. Spread across three levels in multiple galleries. Do yourself a favour and buy a combination ticket that let's you visit 5 sites for just €10. The Chapel in the museum has the most incredible mosaics on the ceiling. Hard to believe it dates back to the 5th century. Highly recommend.