Related:
"Museo Nazionale Romano"

Rome Tourist Guide Museums  

Museo Nazionale Romano

The museum's archaeological collection is not only the best in Rome but also one of the most important worldwide. Parts of the collection can be seen at a number of locations throughout the city, but the most important pieces can be found here at one end of the square. These are the remnants of the Terme di Diocleziano, the most popular and renowned baths of the 4th century, which once accommodated more than 3,000 people. The baths took up an enormous stretch of land, a terrain now flanked by the streets Via Torino, Via Volturno, Piazza dei Cinquecento and Via XX Settembre. The spot that once held the actual baths is now taken up by the Santa Maria degli Angeli Church, which was designed by Michelangelo and contains several, valuable artworks in its interior.

This section of the museum, the Museo Nazionale Romano - Terme di Diocleziano, can be accessed from the Piazza della Repubblica, a square also well-known for its fountain, the Fontana delle Naiade. This section of the museum, resting on the ancient ruins of the baths, only houses a few pieces of the entire collection. The other parts are scattered throughout the city and housed in a number of different places such as the Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, the Palazzo Altemps and the Crypta Balbi. Another interesting site on this square is the Aula Ottagona, a space that displays a number of Roman sculptures from the era of the baths.

The Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, located close to the Terme di Diocleziano, has an impressive collection of sculptures depicting emperors and members of illustrious Roman families as well as ancient paintings, some of which date back as far as the year 20 B.C. The remaining sections of the museum are located further away. Although they don't technically belong to this itinerary, they are mentioned below in order to provide a complete overview of the museum.    

You can visit another part of the collection at the Palazzo Altemps, close to Piazza Navona, which consists mostly of classic sculptures that have been carefully restored and thus saved from complete deterioration. If you head down from Piazza Venezia towards the Tiber, you will come across the Crypta Balbi. As the name indicates, this is a subterranean site; a ruin resting below an old theatre built in the year 13 B.C. 

Other spaces that belong to this unusual and notable archaeological collection include:

Museo Nazionale Romano – Palazzo Massimo alle Terme

Largo di Villa Peretti, 1

Tel. 06 4814144

Open Tuesday-Sunday from 9am to 7:45pm. Closed on Mondays.

General admission 6 €. Reduced admission 3 €

Museo Nazionale Romano – Palazzo Altemps

Piazza di S Apollinare, 44

Tel. 06 6833759

Open Tuesday-Sunday from 9am to 7:45pm. Closed on Mondays.

General admission 5 €. Reduced admission 2,50 €

Museo Nazionale Romano – Crypta Balbi

Via Botteghe Oscure, 31

Tel. 06 6780167

Open Tuesday-Sunday from 9am to 7:45pm. Closed on Mondays.

General admission 4 €. Reduced admission 2 €

Aula Ottagona

ViaG. Romita, 8

Tel. 06 4870690

Open Tuesday-Sunday from 9am to 2pm.

Free admission.

Opening days/hours:
Open Tuesday-Sunday from 9am to 7:45pm. Closed on Mondays.

Nearest landmarks or references:
Termini Station, Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, Piazza della Repubblica