BETA VERSION
Official Tourist Information Site
of Ravenna

Classis Ravenna – Museum of the City and the Territory

Via Classense, 29 - Classe

CLASSIS RAVENNA is one of Italy’s most important archaeological museums, a real journey through the history of Ravenna.

Along with the nearby Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe and the Ancient Port, Classis Ravenna is the third piece of the Archaeological Park of Classe.

Located just a few hundreds metres from the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe, the museum stretches over a 2,800 sqm surface. It is the result of an articulate project of industrial archaeology that restored and renovated a former abandoned sugar factory.

A glittering staircase decorated with a 33 metre-long wave in mosaic in shades of blue created by Laboratorio di Restauro del Mosaico Antico of Fondazione RavennAntica welcomes the visitors.

It is an amazing artwork that allures you up to the museum’s entrance, highlighting the everlasting connection between Ravenna and the sea.

What to see

Once inside, you immediately start your dizzy journey through the millennial history of the Byzantine capital: from its origins, you will arrive up to the Middle Ages.

A timeline will lead you all the way through the museum, keeping track of your journey; step by step you will find all the main information of the different time periods.

Looking at the different sections, you will see ancient findings, dating back to the pre-Roman age or the Etruscan-Umbrian period. Your journey continues across the Roman era, from the Classical Age to Late Christianity.

After a small digression in the Gothic and Byzantine era, you will finally reach the Middle Ages.

Besides the most common items — such as urns and oil lamps coming from the diggings of the Ancient Port of Classe — you will find yourself face to face with statues, memorial stones, polychrome mosaics, further livened up by 3D reconstructions, videos and much more.

A floor mosaic not to be missed is the one coming from the legendary so-called Theodoric’s Palace.

The exhibition doesn’t just follow a progressive timeline, but also focuses on some fundamental aspects of the city’s ancient history.

This is the case of the section about Ravenna as a multiethnic city; about the artworks it preserves; or about the city’s growth and urban development.

A special chapter is dedicated to the close relationship between Ravenna and the sea. It is not by chance that the museum is located in Classe.

The city of Classe was namely the ancient site of the Roman fleet, as well as an important port that has made Ravenna a power of the Mediterranean in the Late Christian period.

Lastly, the itinerary offers an insight on the Basilica of San Severo, a very suggestive place of the ancient civitas Classis, which in the last years has been the focus of an archaeological project that will turn it into the fourth part of the Archaeological Park.

From September 2023, Classis Ravenna has been further enriched by two new exhibition areas – “Living in Ravenna” and “Praying in Ravenna” – exploring two crucial aspects of the history of the city and the territory: residential buldings in late Antiquity and religious buildings.

CONTACTS

FOCUS

Classe and its sugar factory

The sugar factory of Classe has always been an important point of reference for the local community, as throughout most of the 20th century it supplied half of Europe with sugar and provided employment to 600 workers of the area.

Sugar beet cultivation was first experimented in this territory in 1896 and in 1899 the factory was built based on a design by technicians from Prague.

In August 1900, the plant already processed 350 thousand kilograms of sugar beet per day and just three years later it produced 4.2 million kilograms of sugar, making it the seventh biggest sugar factory in Italy.

Except for forced closures between the two World Wars, the sugar factory of Classe continued to operate until July 10th 1982, when it was permanently closed by order of the Prefect of Ravenna.

Today, the last room of the Classis Ravenna museum is dedicated to the history of the building, with photographs, documents and even video interviews with the people of Ravenna who were managers, workers or proud witnesses of this model of economic development that was very important for the history of this land.

Further information

Opening times

Every day: 10 am – 5 pm

Visits for groups upon request: +39 320 9539916 or prenotazioni@ravennantica.org

Last entry: 1 hour before closing.

Closing time

Closed on 25th December.

Entrance fee

Adults: € 8
Concessions (groups, students under 26 years, ICOM, Card Cultura): € 6
Schools: € 5

COMBINED TICKET
> Classis Museum + Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe: € 9; concessions € 8 (18-25 years); € 6 (7-17 years)

Audioguide: € 1

Advanced booking is highly recommended on: info.ravennantica.it

Admission and guided tours for schools: € 6 per child
Educational workshops: € 6 per student

For information and school reservations: +39 0544 36136 (from Monday to Friday 9 am – 1 pm)
Email: didattica@ravennantica.org

Free of charge

Children under 6 years old; tourist guides; employees of the Ministry of Culture; journalists; people with disabilities and caregivers; group leaders; soldiers.

Accessibility

The Classis Museum is entirely accessible to people with disabilities.

How to get there

The museum is about 6 km south of the city centre of Ravenna, in the city of Classe, in the direction of Rimini. It is easy to reach on foot and by train, thanks to the nearby railway station.

By bus: route no. 4 departing from the Ravenna railway station. Find your bus on: www.startromagna.it

By bike: the museum is connected with the city through an efficient cycle lane.

By car: a large car parking area is to not far from the area, as well as an equipped camper resting area.

A cura della Redazione Locale
E-mail: turismo@comune.ravenna.it

Last edit:24 September 2024

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