Archaeological Museum of Gabriele Judica: The Collections of Ancient Akrai
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.3
- Popularity
- Very Low
- Country
- Italy
- Primary era
- Classical
- Eras represented
- Classical
- Civilizations
- Ancient Greek, Roman
- Site type
- Museum
On this page6 sections
History
The Archaeological Museum of Gabriele Judica is a museum in Palazzolo Acreide, Italy, founded by the Sicilian Region and officially opened on 27 December 2014. Its collection is centered on archaeological discoveries from the ancient Greek city of Akrai, alongside material from the Ferla collection and the territory of Leontinoi.
Gabriele Judica and Akrai
Most of the museum’s holdings come from excavations carried out at Akrai by Baron Gabriele Judica in the early nineteenth century. Judica kept the resulting assemblage in his own palace, where it remained together until the museum was established. His work formed the core of the collection and connected the museum directly with the archaeological investigation of the ancient city.
The Museum in Palazzo Cappellani Ferla
The museum occupies Palazzo Cappellani Ferla di Pirainito e Fùrmica, a palace associated with an old noble family of Palazzolo Acreide. Daniele Cappellani was the last recorded owner of the building; he died in 2015. Within the palace, the museum presents the archaeological sequence of the surrounding area from prehistoric and protohistoric phases through the Greek, Hellenistic, Roman, and Late Roman periods.
Remains
The museum’s exhibition area was estimated at approximately 450 square metres in 2015 and about 500 square metres in 2018. Displays occupy two floors and organize the material by period, allowing the collection from Akrai and the other contributing areas to be viewed as a long archaeological sequence.
Lower and Upper Floors
The lower floor contains prehistoric and protohistoric material. On the upper floor, Room 1 introduces Corinthian colonization, meaning the establishment and development of settlements connected with Corinthian Greek expansion. Rooms 2 and 3 present the Archaic period, Rooms 4 and 5 cover the Classical and Post-Classical periods, and Room 6 is devoted to the Hellenistic period. The sequence continues in Room 7 with the Roman period and concludes in Room 8 with the Late Roman period.
Archaeological Collections
The displays include ceramics, vessels, oil lamps, and objects used in everyday life. A Greek stele, an upright stone slab commonly bearing an inscription, relief, or commemorative text, forms part of the collection. Small unguentaria, vessels used for perfumes, oils, or other liquids, are also represented, together with archaeological material from the prehistoric phases of the area.
