(A small museum in the little fortified village of Murlo with the Etruscan remains dug up from an archaeological site nearby; not worth a special expedition, but perhaps worth popping in if you are passing by.)

Open mornings and afternoons except Monday

The nearby archaeological site is on a small hill called Poggio Civitale which was a flourishing Etruscan settlement 800-500 BC - this was presumably a rich agricultural area for the Etruscans. The museum is housed in two ancient palazzi and has just been thoroughly modernized, with lots of descriptions - some also in English. The best thing in it is the recreation of the roof of an Etruscan building (second floor), with the terracotta bust of a man wearing a cowboy hat on the top, gargoyles and sphinxes, and friezes below (stamped terracotta tiles) showing horse-races complete with the large cup awarded to the winner (perhaps an early version of the Palio).

2003