“Vittorino Cazzetta” Museum

Museum visitors are greeted by the geo-paleontological and prehistoric archaeology sections. A large panel near the entrance maps the origins of material collections on display at the museum. Also near the entrance is a large print of Vittorino Cazzetta, the self-taught scientist and explorer with roots in Selva di Cadore to whom the museum is dedicated. Cazzetta was responsible for numerous local discoveries. In the entrance corridor, geological processes that led to the contemporary Dolomites landscape are illustrated -- from ancient tropical sea to alpine peaks. Specific attention is dedicated to Val Fiorentina where the museum is located. A section on mining describes the extraction of local minerals and ores and the nearby mine of Fursil which can be found above the “Strada della Vena” and various other “iron roads” used to transport ores for processing.
In the large room, a collection of fossils and rocks document processes of transformation of the Dolomites during the Triassic. The exhibit is enriched by a large plaster cast which reproduces the face of boulder found at the base of Monte Pelmetto containing dinosaur footprints: a holographic projection on this surface suggestively portrays the dinosaur’s movement along its trajectory as it left its prints.
The archaeology section contextualises the mesolithic burial at Mondeval in a prehistoric phase of seasonal semi-nomadic migration through the alpine areas of the Dolomites. The importance of the archaeological site of Mondeval de Sora (2150 m above sea level) is highlighted as the highest prehistoric burial in Europe, dated to 7500 years before present. The section also explores the subsistence economy practiced by groups of hunter-gatherers that frequented high alpine grasslands. This section also hosts, aside from a collection of artifacts associated with the site, a hypothesized reconstruction of a dwelling used by the group of temporary settlers in Mondeval in correspondence to the erratic boulder on the site of the burial. The museum itinerary concludes with a suggestive reconstruction of the burial site as it was discovered by archaeologists.
A final human history section on the second floor of the museum contains protohistoric, Roman-era and historic artifacts. Visitors to this section view exhibits in a chronological sequence. A first section details historical use of the local area between the late Neolithic and the copper age, with lithic complexes from the findings of Mandriz (1750 m above sea level). The next section proceeds with an exhibit of a plaster cast of an inscribed stone in the ancient Venetic language, discovered in the Monte Pore area. Finally, visitors may view plaster casts of inscriptions on Roman-era stone boundary markers along the ancient border on the nearby Monte Civetta. Following is a museum section containing artefacts from a variety of sporadic discoveries from the medieval period which attest to the frequentation, especially of pastoralists, of the surrounding alpine grasslands, even those at high elevation considered to be most impervious. Next is an exhibit consisting of ancient precious animal skin parchments documenting the history of Selva di Cadore and its connection with the surrounding area, especially in relation to the important mineral resources of the valley. The historical section of the museum concludes with a stone carving of the lion of Marciano which corresponds to the final period of the Serenissima, together with a gonfalone (banner) of the Municipality of Selva di Cadore.

The dinosaur footprints on the boulder of Monte Pelmetto

The mines of Fursil and the “Strada della Vena”, or “Iron Road”