Museum of Roman Civilization

History and general introduction

The museum was designed by the architects Pietro Ascheri, D. Bernardini and Cesare Pascoletti (1939–1941). Its 59 sections illustrate the history of Roman civilization from its origins to the 4th century, with models and reproductions, as well as original material. The premises are shared with a planetarium.

It houses, among other things:

a model of Archaic Rome (Room XVIII)

Il Plastico di Roma Imperiale, a 1:250 scale model of ancient Rome in the age of Constantine I by Italo Gismondi (Room XXXVII-XXXVIII), derived from the early 3rd-century Severan Forma Urbis Romae as updated by Lanciani and integrated with archeological discoveries. This model is made of plaster. The model was ordered by Mussolini in 1933 in honor of Augustus's 2000th birthday, was begun in 1935, and adjusted throughout Gismondi's life until 1971.

examples of late imperial and early Christian art

a complete sequence of casts of the spiral reliefs round Trajan's Column, arranged in horizontal rows at ground level to facilitate reading.

a reconstructed Roman library based on that in the Villa Adriana at Tivoli

The museum was closed for renovation in January 2014, and work on the renovation was started in June 2017. As of January 2025, the design has been finalized, and the estimated date of completion is the second quarter of 2026. The official date of reopening, however, has not yet been announced.