Visit the Sannio Museum in Benevento

The history of the Samnite people from prehistory to the present day

Samnite history

The Sannio Museum traces the history of Benevento and its culture through its collections located in some of the most beautiful places in the historic center of Benevento: the cloister of Santa Sofia, the church of Sant’Ilario, the ARCOS museum and Palazzo Casiello.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL, MEDIEVAL AND ARTISTIC SECTION: CLOISTER OF SANTA SOFIA

In the splendid setting of the cloister of the Santa Sofia complex are the archaeological, medieval and artistic sections of the Sannio Museum. Here, through pottery, archaeological finds, statues, funerary monuments, steles and much more, the Samnite history is retraced from prehistory to the Roman age, passing through the Egyptians and the Lombards.

While the artistic section is concentrated in the Art Gallery where the Renaissance, Baroque, nineteenth and twentieth century works of artists from Benevento are exhibited.

The Sannio Museum at the Santa Sofia cloister is open from Tuesday to Sunday, from 9:00 to 19:00.

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SCULPTURE, SARCOPHAGI AND PORTRAITS SECTION: PALAZZO CASIELLO

Completing the cloister collection is the adjacent Palazzo Casiello where, in addition to the collection that includes sculptures, sarcophagi and portraits, there is an infopoint and a bookshop where you can buy some souvenirs of the Museo del Sannio.

Palazzo Casiello is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 to 19:00.

EGYPTIAN SECTION: ARCOS MUSEUM

The Egyptian section of the Sannio Museum is hosted by the ARCOS museum, a museum of contemporary art in Benevento.

Here you will find the permanent collection dedicated to the goddess Isis: “Isis the scandalous and the magnificent; journey into the myth between real and virtual”, composed of the finds belonging to the Benevento temple of Isis that was built by the emperor Domitian.

The ARCOS museum is located in Corso Garibaldi, in the basement of the Palazzo del Governo, and is open every day from 9:00 to 13:00 and from 16:00 to 18:00.

SMARTIP

In the Rocca dei Rettori, better known as the castle of Benevento, there is the historical section of the Museo del Sannio with materials that retrace the history of the Samnite capital.

The gardens of the Rocca host the lapidary dedicated to the soldiers of the Via Traiana and various Roman architectural finds.

MUSEUM OF THE ARCH OF TRAJAN: CHURCH OF SANT’ILARIO

In the Monumental Complex of Sant’Ilario a Port’Aurea, the oldest in the old Maleventum, there is the Museum of the Arch of Trajan, where the history of the emperor Trajan carved in the marbles of the triumphal arch is described through video supports.

The museum dedicated to the Arch is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 16:00 to 19:00.