Interesting museums for children and teens

The exhibition, situated in a fortified house dating back to the 16th century, proposes a journey through the ancient Carnival who animates the villages of the Gran San Bernardo valley.

Its realisation has been possible thanks to:
• photographs of the exhibition “Quand l’ours se réveille… - Le Carnaval en Vallée d’Aoste de 1900 à 1970”, property of BREL;
• material coming from the AVAS archives
• works realized inside the “Project Carnaval”, by the schools belonging to the Grand Combin scholastic institution
• european project “Grand-Saint-Bernard 360°”
• material borrowed or donated by private citizens

The museum gives the possibility to discover the way of life in ancient times, when human being used to share the same room with animals, in order to warm naturally the place in which he lived.
In the kitchen we see a mother with her daughter doing housework, while the father and his son take care of calf, sheep, goat, hen and rabbit in the cowshed.
It is also possible to see the tools used in the past for agriculture works, now replaced more and more by modern and technological objects.

Innocenzo Manzetti (Aosta, 1826 – 1877) was scientist and inventor. Creative but pragmatic mind, he was known inside the scientific community for his inventions: an automaton playing flute, a steam car, a hydraulic pump, an exceptionally precise sculpting machine, a special hydraulic cement and many other objects. Some sources describe him as a forerunner of the telephone’s invention, which he studied and improved between 1844 and 1864, eventhough he never patented it.

The permanent exhibition Innocenzo Manzetti: the inventor and his Automaton is located inside the Aosta Saint-Bénin Center, in a special room within the antique church sacristy.

A modern showcase contains the original Automaton and the harmonium, designed, constructed and adapted by Manzetti himself.
On the walls, six interactive screens allow to access at all the information available about Manzetti and his inventions.
Particular attention is given to themes such as the inventor’s biography, the depiction of the historical context in which he lived, his scientific interests and an accurate description of all his creations. Moreover, a 3D virtual animation simulates the functioning of the Automaton’s mechanisms in relation to the movement of the harmonium keys.
Finally, two small screens are installed to show simplified information, specifically conceived for children.

Located in the Opera Ferdinando on the first level of the Fortress, this museum offers an exciting journey into the evolution of defence techniques, blockade systems and the ‘border’ concept.
The need to provide further historical information and material regarding the site and the Fortress was the starting point of a project that later revealed the need to expand this itinerary of knowledge – both in terms of time and space – to include the configuration of the 19th century Fort into the history of fortification systems in view of the Alps as a physical boundary, obstacle, natural barrier, mobile frontier, territory and a political border where people have lived, crossed, explored, defended and fortified throughout the centuries.

The museum is organised in three separate sections:

• ”Fortress Museum and Defensive Walls”
• ”The Fortified Alps (1871-1946)”
• ”The Alps, a frontier?”

Fortress Museum and Defensive Walls
A tour of this first section outfitted in the Opera Ferdinando Superiore makes it possible for guests to fully experience a series of historical settings furnished with models, film clips and authentic weapons. The narrative development highlights the evolution of forts in the Western Alps through the progression of military weapons and strategies as well as construction materials and techniques from the time of the Romans up to the new architectural and ballistic solutions of the 20th century.
Guests are launched into a different era as they go from room to room thanks to explanatory devices enhanced by original maps and clips of famous film sequences of war scenes such as: Kingdom of Heaven (Ridley Scott, 2005); Masada (Boris Sagal, 1981); The Profession of Arms (Ermanno Olmi, 2001); Alatriste (Augustin Diaz Yanks, 2006); The Last Valley (James Clavell, 1971); Revolution (Hugh Hudson, 1985); The Last of the Mohicans ( Michael Mann, 1992); Glory (Edward Zwick, 1989); Cold Mountain (Anthony Minghella, 2003).

The Fortified Alps (1871-1946)
The second portion of the museum is located in the Opera Ferdinando Inferiore and is dedicated to the transformations that took place between the late 19th and 20th centuries. The Bard Fortress is included in the system of 19th century forts and is presented through scenic reconstructions and scale models for the purpose of the highlighting the most representative traits of forts found throughout the Alps and to showcase these mountains as the very stage for the technological transformation that has made them “the Italian frontier”. A tale of the evolution of fortresses through the progression of weapons (and vice-versa). The change in construction materials and techniques, the gradual thickening of the walls, the placement of forts in areas that had become increasingly dominant as well as the development of strategic methods and architectural solutions. All of this is constantly linked to the offensive ability of the enemy and the possibility of a break through on the part of blockading armies.
The question of militarized mountains is explored in the sections dedicated to the First and Second World Wars and the Resistance, enhanced by the evocative impact provided by a multi-media approach.

The Alps, a frontier?
The third and final section asks a question that puts visitors in the condition of thinking about the itinerary they have just concluded and the true meaning of the term “frontier”: boundary or barrier? Obstacle or bridge?
The exhibit itinerary articulates and conveys a complex and well-structured view of the Bard Fortress as well as a historical, social, cultural and geo-political context that includes perspectives from different historical eras: a journey into the past which ends with an extremely timely reflection upon our own days.
In this way, guests become the main players in the exchange with the place they are visiting. They are on a quest for the identity of the constantly evolving Alps – the crossroads of great events of the past as well as the history of mankind made up of simple actions and memories.

Located on the first floor of the Opera Carlo Alberto , the most important building of the spectacular Bard Fortress compound, the Museum of the Alps is an interactive, multimedia and multidisciplinary journey, an avant-garde museum space telling the story of a living, breathing mountain transformed in the hands of mankind.
The exhibition space consists of twenty-nine rooms divided into four parts, involving the visitor in the discovery of the Alps through short video projections outlining the themes covered in each of the four sections and narrated by four specialists: a naturalist, a geographer, an anthropologist and a meteorologist.
Tradition and modern technology are fused together to take you on a voyage into time and space where the sets are brought alive through visual projections, sounds and interactive multimedia games. A process of discovery in which the visitor becomes the protaganist like the leading character in an exciting novel and is called upon to use all the five senses, offering an extremely enjoyable learning experience that plunges you deep into the alpine culture.

The journey begins with an ascent to the summit, and images of highland scenery. The heart-warming ‘‘mountain symphony’‘ accompanies you around the museum.

Touch the altitude : the introduction is an inviting video installation by artist Armin Linke that creates the visions and sounds of the pastures, tunnels, slopes and high-tech skiers. ‘‘Saliamo in montagna!’‘ (’‘Up we go!’‘) is the invitation in the ‘‘gallery of voices’‘: a kaleidoscope of Alpine languages, welcoming you to the museum.

Listen to the passing seasons : it makes you feel like stroking the legendary Dahu, the animal with two short legs to adapt to the mountain slopes, former evidence of the amazing biodiversity of the alpine environment. Clips, 3D models, short films and touch screens show you the climate, the short highland seasons, the plants and the tenacious inhabitants of the mountains.

Fly like an eagle among the peaks : a 3D video carries the visitor on the breathtaking flight of the eagle from the summit of Mount Blanc, over the picturesque landscape of Val d’Aosta, among glaciers, waterfalls and castles, over the fortress in Bard.

Walk on the Tethys Ocean : the geography room has a spectacular interactive map which takes you on a walk through the Alps; the most famous and spectacular summits are represented in the orogeny room, a journey back in time, among the lava explosions generated by fire and the marine undertows that gave rise to the Dolomites.

Dance in a carnival of voices and colours : the reconstruction of the stable, the parlour, the school and several interactive films tell the story of Alpine civilisation and the culture linked to work, the mill and the mine. Then get involved in a joyful dance celebration at the end of winter, festivals and colourful mountain carnival, ‘‘lanzette’‘ processions - typical Val d’Aosta masks - or in the dances of the ‘‘wild man’‘.

Conquer the summit like a mountain climber : lastly, a journey into the romantic experience of nineteenth-century mountaineers, on the quest for the impenetrable summits, and then a train trip with ski tourists ready to take to the slopes. A multiform mountain to be discovered and experienced with a passion.

A multimedia tale : the voice of a ‘‘witness’‘, the naturalist, the geographers, the anthropologist, the meteorologist relates the theme of 6 sections of the museum from a screen in every room.

A symphony of sounds and colours : video projections and sounds give life to the scenery, reconstructions, multimedia and interactive games to educate, amuse and immerge in Alpine culture. These videos guide visitors through this fascinating exploration.

Completely redone in 2023, this space devoted to getting to know the mountains, dedicated to children and families, offers a series of scientific workshops, within the Opera Vittorio, on the topic of climate change and the impact it is having on glaciers throughout the world.

Each room allows the visitor to learn about the four most important peaks in Valle d’ Aosta - Monte Rosa, The Matterhorn, Gran Paradiso and Mont Blanc - and the conditions of the glacial areas of each one through a series of photographic comparisons. Each room also presents a geological and scientific theme that can be explored in depth via recreational activities and workshops.

The place also hosts the Ice Memory installation with various stations that use augmented reality to talk about the state of health of the glaciers and to involve young people in understanding the dynamics linked to climate warming and to promote the adoption of sustainable behaviour.

The space can be used freely by purchasing an entrance ticket to Fort Bard.

Workshops addressed to schools and groups can be carried out for a fee upon reservation.

Located within the Carlo Alberto Building , the cramped cells of the Bard fortress in which prisoners were held, house today a history tour that leads visitors on the search for the story behind this military site, a centuries-old strategic transition point. Through films, documents and evocative 3D reconstructions, visitors can familiarise themselves with the architectural development of the fortress and know the individuals who characterised its main historical events from the year 1000, through its reconstruction in 1830, to the present day.
Visitor’s tour
The Prisons are comprised of 24 cells, all extremely small in size (around 1.3 × 2 metres), arranged along four sections and preceded by an entrance gallery which was dedicated to the iconographic representation of the Fort: The atrium screens a film about the complex restoration and reconstruction work performed on the Fort between 1996 and 2006.
From here, the visitor enters four rooms of the first section , where different stations characterised by three-dimensional models represent the Fort’s transformation through the various epochs: Roman, Medieval, 1500s and 1600s, and 1700s. In the subsequent spaces, a film gives voice to those who experienced one of the most important historical episodes in the history of the Fort: the siege of Napoleon’s troops.
In the second section , Napoleon Bonaparte, the French general Berthier, and the Austrian captain Bernkopf, reveal the offensive and defensive strategies of the bitter battle fought in the spring of 1800. The tour is enlivened by projections of drawings from the topographer and painter Pietro Bagetti, and by the writings of Stendhal, privileged witnesses to the Bard history.
The third part of the tour presents the testimony of the captain of the Military Engineering services, Francesco Antonio Olivero, to whom Charles Felix of Savoy had entrusted the reconstruction of the Fort after Napoleon’s passing. Images and documents are projected inside a cell: an 1829 relief of the Fort and a project from 1830 show how Olivero exploited all the strategic peculiarities of the location, designing many overlapping buildings in order to increase lines of fire. The works were completed in just eight years.
The fourth section ’s protagonist is Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, luxury ‘prisoner’ during the reconstruction. In 1831, he was tasked with overseeing the works: despite the fact that the task would have elicited enthusiasm in anyone else, for Cavour it was a punishing experience, a ‘moral prison’ that he later defined as ‘exile’. Within the section there are also several objects from daily life in the Fort. A set recreates the typical atmosphere of a cell, while a panelling on a wall shows the garrisons which were stationed one after another at the Fort and the reproductions of several paintings by Quinto Cenni. On two screens, a film made in collaboration with the Archive of the Military Engineering of Rome allows visitors to discover the results of research regarding the soldiers present in the Fort over the years.
In the last room, the decline and rebirth of the Fort during the course of the 1900s is retraced by means of an interview with Ferdinando Jacquemet, a living witness able to recount the last chapter of the Bard story. The tour concludes with the projection of an animation tracing the development of military settlements within the Bard Fort from the year 1000 to the present day.
The tour is combined with the opportunity to participate in four teaching workshops , conducted depending on the age of the students, from infant school to lower secondary school.

The museum is situated inside an ancient building in the centre of the village of Chardonney, where is also located the “Lo Dzeut” cooperative.

In the museum it is possible to admire an ancient stable, a historical building and only example currently present in Champorcher. It is possible to see an old manual wooden loom and a warping frame.
Conservation work on the rooms, including a cellar (crotta), a rustic kitchen (meison) and a stable (boi), were varied in nature, however always in compliance with the structure, the fixtures and furniture, and their background and use.
The loom was restored to pristine condition to be used for demonstrations.

An optical fibre lighting system was created, which helps to recreate the soft semi-darkness shared by men and animals during the wintertime.
A sound system provides realistic background noises of cows in the stalls, women praying and the loom in operation.

The museum is located inside the former Hotel Londres, near the town hall: it hosts an exhibition of tools used in works of beekeeping in the ancient times.

The Visitor Center of the Gran Paradiso National Park of Cogne Laboratory Park presents the complex and dynamic evolution of the protected area as in a laboratory of experimentation: explanatory models, multimedia systems, interactive games and an original “sensory space” that offers visitors the opportunity to appreciate the scents of nature and hear the characteristic sounds of the woods.
The main idea revolves around the concept of land use and management, which is only possible by means of an in-depth knowledge of the environmental data.

The themes developed in the Cogne Visitor Center are:

• water: the models show the effects that water has on the territory, they illustrate some flood events and describe the interaction between human settlements and the hydrogeological aspects
• forest and pasture: a “multimedia” immersion into the life of the woodcutter and the simulation of important choices for the maintenance of the forest
• fauna and man: the manner in which man and animals interact.

The center also hosts two interesting thematic set-ups devoted to the wolf and to the ibex, respectively

The exhibition itinerary does not have an obligatory linear pathway: choose your own “path” according to your interests and to the level of in-depth study you wish to make.

Audio guide mp3