Located in the Palazzetto delle Armi, the Museum of Art and History of mining was set up in 1984 by volunteers of the mineralogic group of Massa. In 2001 it opened again after an accurate scientific rearrangement by the Departments of Archeology, Art History and Earth Science History of the University of Siena, wich made it much more visitor-friendly.
The Palazzetto delle Armi was built in 1443 by a Lombard master named Jacopo. A unique example of civil architecture of the fifteenth century, it served as a storage place for the City arms, hence its name.
Exhibits are on display in four halls, two on each of the palazzo’s floors. The first hall (ticket booth) contains the plan of the territory of Massa at the time when it was dominated by the etruscan city of Vetulonia (7th – 6th century). The second hall includes the plan of Massa at the time when it was a Free City (1225 – 1335), the model of the town of “Massa Metallorum”, a panel with a copy of the Codice Minerario Massetano (Massa’s Mining Code), a set of regulations governing the mining activity in the Free City of Massa (13th century), panels on the history of mining from the Middle Ages through the present day and a wood model of a scaffold for hoisting shaft. The third hall features a mineral collection from the territory of Massa. The fourth hall contains a plan of the Colline Metallifere in the period between the 14th and the 20th centuries, instruments for the detection and extraction of minerals and little models of armors.
A visit to this museum will offer great insights into the mining work and life in this area.