How to organize a visit to the Museum of the Mummies of Ferentillo
The Umbrian territory is dotted with natural, historical, architectural and religious treasures, some show themselves in all their astonishing beauty like the Marmore Waterfall, while others are almost hidden like the Museum of the Mummies of Ferentillo.
This little museum preserves bodies naturally mummified thanks to the particularity of the land where they were buried. This fact aroused the interest of the scientific community and of tourist from all over the world that reach Ferentillo to visit this very special museum.
Discover how to organize a visit to the Museum of the Mummies of Ferentillo in Ferentillo.
Ferentillo, a village two souls
The village of Ferentillo is located in the municipality of Terni immersed in the uncontaminated nature of the Valnerina. This valley formed by the Nera River is characterized by mountainous and rugged landscapes interspersed with narrow valleys where small towns have sprung up over the centuries.
Ferentillo is a town with 1,000 inhabitants and 2 souls, the village of Matterella and that of Precetto separated by the Nera river.
Despite its small size, Ferentillo was for a long time an important cultural and religious centre and its territory is dotted with several architectural and religious artworks. Today the Museum of the Mummies of Ferentillo and the Abbey of San Pietro in Valle stand out among these important pieces of evidence of the past.
The history of the Museum of the Mummies of Ferentillo
The creation of the Museum of Mummies occurred by chance because of the promulgation of Napoleon’s Edict of Saint-Cloud. This law prohibited the practice of burying the dead inside the church and provided for their displacement outside the city walls for health reasons.
The friars responsible for the crypt of the Church of Saint Stephen, where all the dead of Precetto were buried up until then, ordered excavations to adapt to the new law and with great astonishment found corpses buried in 1500 perfectly intact in all their details after 300 years from their burial.
For decades, these mummies remained exposed in the crypt without special precautions until in 1992, due to their progressive deterioration, it was decided to preserve them in display cases and thus the museum area was born.
The causes of the natural mummification process
According to numerous studies carried out to understand the mystery of the natural mummification of the inhabitants of Ferentillo, this situation was favoured by its the particular soil rich in calcium, limestone and clay salts that caused the dehydration of the bodies.
An overview of the Museum
Today in the Museum of Mummies there are 24 mummies of men, women and children, 10 heads and nearly 300 skulls.
These mummies are characterized by an excellent degree of conservation, they have hair, beard, teeth, nails but also scars, sores and wounds. Their garments are almost perfect, a peculiarity that favoured their generic identification as civilians, peasants, soldiers, etc.
When you enter the museum, you receive a booklet that allows you to know the personal history of these mummies. You can see 2 French soldiers arrived in Italy for the Napoleonic campaigns of 1796-1797, two Asian spouses who came to this area for the Jubilee Year 1750, a peasant woman, a woman who died of childbirth with her newborn and the sealed coffin of a murdered lawyer, never opened for respect of family who still lives in Ferentillo.
Approaching the thecae, you can feel empathy for those women and men who belonged to such a distant era. It’s really an incredible emotion that it’s difficult to describe, you have to experience it.
Useful information to plan a visit to the Museum of the Mummies of Ferentillo
Discover useful tips and suggestions to plan your visit to the Museum of the Mummies of Ferentillo.
How to reach the Museum
The Museum of the Mummies of Ferentillo in Via della Rocca in the locality Precetto in Ferentillo in the province of Terni, about 36 km from San Gemini. To reach this museum it is possible to take the A1 motorway exiting at Orte or to take the E4 highway exiting at Terni. In both cases, you must continue on the Valnerina state road.
Opening hours
The opening hours of the Museum of Mummies vary according to the months and the seasons.
From April to September it is open from 10.00 am to 1.00 am and from 3.00 pm to 7.30 pm, in October and March the closing hour is at 6.00 pm, from November to February it is anticipated at 5.00 pm.
Ticket rates
The cost of the full ticket is 3 euros, groups of more than 15 people pay 2.50 euros.
Special note
A visit to the Ferentillo Mummies is only recommended if you are not very impressionable.
The advice before organizing a visit to this museum is to assess your own emotional state and that of any other companions.
Consider, however, that the sight of mummies, corpses and bones can be disquieting and cause emotions that are completely unexpected and different from person to person regardless of his age.