National Archeological Museum of Ferrara

The collection of Attic red-figure vases here is simply world-class. Each piece tells a story of ancient Greek mythology and daily life with such precision that it’s hard to believe they are over 2,000 years old. Another highlight is the 'Sala degli Ori' (Hall of Gold Jewelry). The display, designed in partnership with Bulgari, makes the Etruscan gold pieces shine like modern masterpieces. The craftsmanship of the necklaces and amulets is exquisite!

Expected different kinds of archaeological finds but it was 98% Greek & Etruscan pottery… in the whole building complex…

The museum holds the excavated remains from an Etruscan necropolis and the trading town of Spina that was excavated between the 1920s and 1950s before being buried under fields in a land reclamation project. The town was founded in the sixth century BC and was an important port and marketplace. It became wealthy on trade and that wealth was reflected in the grave goods with lots of expensive Athenian ceramics. The town was destroyed by the Celts in around 300BC I think and then the river slowly moved, burying the town and necropolis under sediment where it remained lost until 1922. The museum had some fabulous items on display and it was all well laid out in chronological order. The ceramics were the star of the show, some of them were around a metre tall and classic Greek designs but for me the best items were the carving of a married couple - so much affection in a 2500 year old stone carving - and the strainer, a beautiful design that would grace any modern home. There were also lots of wonderful glasswork and gold earrings as well as the inscriptions on the graves to help archaeologists understand population movements and interactions. Luckily there were plenty of English inscriptions and I spent a couple of hours including a quick walk round the garden and a look at the two preserved Roman canoes. The building itself is the Palazzo Costabili, built for the Ambassador to Milan in the late fifteenth century and has some remarkable ceilings as well as a quite stupendous map room.

This is the best archeological museum in this trip, so far (went to Venice and Bologna). Museums with this large amount of items tend to become an overwhelming warehouse or a careless highlight show without any educational intention (iykyk). But the Ferrara museum is well curated (multi media, tireless explanation, English translation, the giant "Spina book"...), takes its pace and tells an intriguing story of Spina. Plus it only coats €8. I found here again the joy from last year in Rome. The palace itself is beautiful, with a garden which I’m sure is even more stunning in spring. The staff are also friendly, helping me find moved exhibits.

Spectacular collection of beautiful pottery items from the ancient settlement of Spina. Building housing the collection is lovely too. A must see for archeology fans and not only!

Exceptional Etruscan museum. Great size - it’s not huge but the number of artifact surprised me and the preservation was astounding. Also, it’s housed in a gorgeous palace and has very nice gardens. I’m very glad I visited.

It's okay. Free admission because we were under 25 (or maybe because we are students? Not sure). However, the collection did not seem unique to us. It's mainly vases and paintings. Don't get me wrong, they are beautiful. But after having seen quite a few museums in Italy, this one did not seem to offer anything new to our experience. There were barely any other visitors, despite it being August.

Very nice mesum in a beautiful historical sixteenth centuary building "Palazzo Costabili", also known as Ludovico il Moro. The collection is vast, featuring artefacts from the ancient world of Spina.