The Ethnographical Museum of Rural Civilization, Arts and Crafts, Municipality of Centro Valle Intelvi - located in the town of Casasco - is a precious, historical and social resource, a cultural and human evidence which has the goal of bonding the inhabitants and the people of Valle Intelvi to their origins.
The Museum was inaugurated on November 5th, 1995 thanks to an idea of the mayor Piergiorgio Cairoli; the original purpose was to preserve and pass on the cultural heritage of rural civilization, arts and handicrafts, respecting the customs, the ideals and the feelings of the people who, thanks to their hard work, faced a reality that nowadays is unknown to us.
The objects and the tools are grouped by setting and activities according to a precise reconstruction that has the effect of creating an intense emotion for an age that we consider far from us yet still so near.
Only in this way, through a dynamic exhibition, can the Ethnographical Museum become like the pages of an interesting book. Our Museum shows the life of the common people, according to the cycle of seasons, the festivities and the hard everyday life of a community so deeply rooted in the territory, formally patriarchal but matriarchal in the substance.
In fact, we must remember that the entire territory of Valle Intelvi was essentially an area of seasonal migrations and, as such, subject to the absence of most of the male population. Everyday life was overseen by the female members of the family who had to take care of the work in the fields, the breeding of the cattle and the wellbeing and education of their children.
The representation of the hard and humble work of the people acquires, in this way, a high ethical sense. Respecting and protecting this heritage becomes almost like an obligation, an act of love and respect to our own roots.
The Museum has been set up in a renovated cottage, where we can find the objects that testify the activities linked to agriculture, cattle breeding, cheese making, transportation, handicrafts activities, smuggling and everyday life that have characterized the inhabitants of Valle Intelvi through the years. Particularly interesting is the collection of tools concerning the manufacturing of "SCAGLIOLA" (a mixture of plaster, glue and colours), both marbled and inlaid, which has given so much prestige to Valle Intelvi.
A small showcase of old pictures belonging to the Museum's photo library completes the visit.
For informations and reservations, please contact:
- +39 335/5360417
- e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
- web: www.museodicasasco.it
- Facebook: Museo di Casasco
- Instagram: museodicasascointelvi
OPENING TIMES:
AUGUST 2022
Thursday from 4:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Saturday from 4:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
This description was made by the Association "Amici del Museo di Casasco Intelvi" with the patronage of the administration of the Municipality of Centro Valle Intelvi