The Vesuvius National Park Museum was established in agreement between the Park Authority, the Municipality of Boscoreale, which hosts it in its territory, the Vesuvius Observatory and the Cives Foundation.
The aim of the initiative is to make known and enhance the natural, historical and artistic heritage of the Vesuvius area, with particular attention to the eruptions that have occurred in history and the great wealth of the Somma-Vesuvius volcanic complex in terms of biodiversity.
In addition to the Exhibition Center including the Museum and the Multimedia Center, the area also includes the Auditorium and the open-air arena, a bookshop and the headquarters of the Carabinieri Department Boscoreale Park.
The Museum consists of three large rooms connected by two short corridors also used as exhibition spaces. All rooms are equipped with display cases and dioramas, illustrative panels, multimedia equipment, videos and interactive games concerning the various topics covered.
The first room illustrates in depth the evolution over time of the Somma-Vesuvius complex and its volcanological characteristics. A large model of the current volcano stands out in the exhibition space, highlighting its most recent eruptions and the effects on the environment. The sequence of formation and transformation of various soils that have overlapped in the Vesuvian area from the Neolithic to today as a result of the various eruptive events is described in the corridor that follows.
The second room, the central one, is dedicated to biodiversity and highlights the four characteristic Environmental Systems of the volcanic complex, with the species of flora and fauna that characterize them. Without neglecting the agricultural environment and its correlation with volcanic materials. The corridor that follows tells the various aspects of anthropization of the Vesuvius area, presenting both the negative effects on the environment and the traditional techniques that respect the environment.
The third room is reserved for the interaction between man and the volcanic environment, with particular attention to the volcanic materials used in the construction of houses and infrastructures. There is also a model with the reproduction of a typical Vesuvian farmhouse and the wine production process.
Outside the building, four flowerbeds are set up that reproduce the four Vesuvius environmental systems: the Vesuvian vegetable gardens and vines, the undergrowth, the orchards of Vesuvius and the broom.
The exhibition area also includes an Auditorium for 324 spectators. There, a 25-minute film is continuously projected with an interesting virtual reconstruction of ancient Pompeii and the description, by ancient inhabitants of the Roman era, of daily life in the city and of the moments that preceded the eruption of 79 AD.
To complete the museum complex there is also an open arena, between the Auditorium and the Exhibition Center, which can accommodate up to 350 people.
