The Museum's Natural History Collections
Originally, in 1855, the Museo Civico di Vicenza was located in the prestigious Palazzo Chiericati. There, the Museum significantly enriched its important natural history collections, thanks to donations from Scortegagna, Gardinale, Lioy, and many other illustrious naturalists. Among these are rich herbariums, silver-bearing minerals, the Crocodilus vicetinus fossil from a quarry in Bolca, a bat found in the lignite of Monteviale, and much more.
During the Second World War, the Civic Museum was bombed (March 18, 1945), and almost all of its natural history materials were irreparably destroyed. Of the ancient collections, only two paleontological ones were recovered from the ruins of the palace.
The current display is therefore largely composed of recent acquisitions and donations, although certainly of no less value. The Museum's collections today consist of precious ornithological specimens, mounted or in their skins, including many rare species; malacological and osteological collections; and the seven folders comprising the Herbarium by the famous naturalist and archaeologist Paolo Lioy, compiled between 1854 and 1856. The entomological collections are also extensive, including several holotypes and paratypes of species described in the Vicenza area or by local naturalists, further enhancing the museum's strong connection to the local area.
Renato Regalin Cave Insect Entomological Collection
A collection consisting exclusively of troglobitic insects.
864 specimens.
Erminio Piva Entomological Collection
A collection representative of the Italian troglobitic insect fauna. The material comes entirely from caves in northern Italy.
87 specimens.
Paolo Fontana Entomological Collection
A collection consisting primarily of beetles. It included nearly complete collections of Zygenids, blister beetles, oedemerids, and cicindelic beetles belonging to the Italian fauna, as well as a small group of scorpions.
The first group, consisting exclusively of purchased beetles, was followed by a second batch of donated material.
7000 specimens.
Alberto Fracasso Lepidoptera Entomological Collection
This collection consists exclusively of Lepidoptera, collected primarily in Triveneto area. All material is determinate.
213 specimens.
F.M. Buzzetti Entomological Collection
A collection of dry-prepared insects, predominantly Heteroptera. Note a box of dermaptera, particularly significant for the Italian fauna.
3186 specimens.
Dino Mondin Coleoptera Entomological Collection
This collection consists of 46 entomological boxes. The collection is almost completely determinate; this determinate material consists primarily of Carabidae. All material is of Palearctic origin.
5795 specimens.
Faustino Cussigh Entomological Collection
A collection of dry-prepared insects, mostly beetles, mainly from Vicenza area. It contains the Curculio vicetinus Cussigh, 1989 and biological study material.
26569 specimens.
Invertebrate Collection in Liquid
Approximately 100 test tubes containing invertebrates in alcohol. Heterogeneous material, collected primarily in Italy and by different people.
100 specimens.
Malacological Collection
A collection of freshwater and terrestrial mollusk shells. It was begun with specimens donated by Ermanno Quaggiotto.
26 specimens.
Ornithological Collection of Skin and Mounted Specimens
A collection of birds, consisting primarily of skin specimens and, to a lesser extent, mounted specimens. They belong to 188 species and are almost all accompanied by capture data. The provenance is largely local (province of Vicenza), with a few specimens from other Italian or foreign locations. Most were donated to the Museum by the Provincial Administration; some were acquired through specific collection campaigns.
903 specimens.
Giovanni Baron Ornithological Collection
Collection consisting of birds captured primarily in Vicenza area in the early 1900s. The specimens are all mounted.
177 specimens.
De Marchi Ornithological Collection
Collection consisting primarily of mounted prepared birds, each labeled with provenance and capture data (26 specimens). Interesting specimen: Greater Spotted Eagle. The same collection also includes fossils and contemporary marine shells; all material is indeterminate and without provenance.
50 specimens.
Herpetological Collection: Alcohol-Exuviae
Approximately 90 specimens preserved in alcohol and exuviae. The collection's formation coincides with the launch of the amphibian and reptile provincial atlas project. Material was primarily collected in Vicenza area. Some specimens were collected in Croatia, Corsica, Spain, and Georgia.
90 specimens.
Geo-Paleontological Collection – Vertebrates (Quaternary)
Collection of bones (human and wildlife) collected by Gastone Trevisiol during peat excavations in the Fimon Valleys (Valdemarca) between 1940 and 1944.
643 specimens.
Osteological Collection of Amphibians and Reptiles
It contains several turtle carapaces as well as lizard and amphibian bones.
8 specimens.
Chiropterological Collection
It contains bats preserved dry and in alcohol. The specimens were collected in Vicenza area.
8 specimens.
Macromammals - Skins
Collection of Macromammal skins, found in the province of Vicenza by the Provincial Administration's surveillance corps. Only some skins are tanned.
9 specimens.
Micromammals - Skins
Collection of Micromammal skins: dry prepared skins, skulls, mandibles, and other bone parts of Micromammals.
180 specimens.
Ichthyological Collection in Alcohol
Consisting of only three specimens. The material comes exclusively from the province of Vicenza.
3 specimens.
Osteological Macromammal Collection
It contains skulls, mandibles, and various macrovertebrate bones. The specimens are mainly from Vicenza area and consigned. The preparation was carried out at the Museum.
29 specimens.
Osteological Ornithological Collection
It contains mainly bird skulls recovered by surveillance officers of the Provincial Administration. The specimens are stored in pressure-sealed plastic bags.
37 specimens.
Geo-Paleontological Collection - Fossils
It includes materials from the “Gabinetto di Storia Naturale” of Dr. Francesco Orazio Scortegagna. This collection most likely also includes fossils acquired by the Museum in the 19th century from other collectors. Some of the material was catalogued by Ermanno Quaggiotto (319 entries).
2904 specimens.
Paleontological-Petrographic Collection
A diverse paleontological-petrographic collection, consisting primarily of rocks and fossils from the provinces of Verona and Vicenza. Some of the specimens are accompanied by tags with a non-scientific identification of the specimen. The time of formation and acquisition by the Museum is uncertain. An analysis of the tags, however, suggests that the collection was formed after the mid-19th century.
2025 specimens.
Geo-Paleontological Collection - Minerals and Rocks
The collection includes numerous materials; some of them likely come from the “Gabinetto di Storia Naturale”, where donations made to the Museum in the 19th century were stored. The collection consists of 656 unidentified specimens, housed in 12 boxes.
656 specimens.
Da Schio et al. Geo-Paleontological Collection
The collection includes materials donated by Alvise and Giulio Da Schio and possibly also by other naturalists such as Paolo Lioy, Franco Cibele, and Carlo Ghellini.
466 specimens.
Grotta del Lupo Quaternary Fauna Osteology Collection
Quaternary fauna discovered in a deposit remodeled by illegal excavation.
116 specimens.
Franco Mastrovita Paleontological Collection
The collection includes specimens of fossil invertebrates from various locations in Vicenza area: Altavilla Vicentina, Gambugliano, Monteviale, Monte San Lorenzo, San Luca di Marostica, Riva Mala, Monte Ponzimiglio, Cava Boschetto di Chiampo, Malo, Schio, San Urbano, and Perarolo.
1636 specimens.
Paleontological Collection - Open
The collection's formation dates back to the early 1980s, when a “Committee” was being organized in Vicenza, including the Club Speleologico Proteo. Its goal was to establish a new Natural History Museum in Vicenza. Proteo members, along with other passionate paleontologists, assembled an initial core of fossils to be displayed in the new museum. The collection has grown over the years to its current state. No new additions have been made in recent years. The collection contains approximately 450 identified specimens, of which approximately 200 have been inventoried. Determination and inventory performed by Ermanno Quaggiotto.
245 specimens.
Paolo Lioy Herbarium
Herbarium containing 1,207 fogli (f): 1,203 with specimens of vascular species, 3 bryophytes, and 1 lichen. The specimens are divided into 7 faldoni (F) and 418 cartelle (c). F1, 63c, 170 f; F2, 53c, 191f; F3, 60c, 149f; F4, 60c, 182f; F5, 61c, 184f; F6, 59c, 159f; F7, 62c, 172f. 46 specimens lack the original label and have been identified. 22 specimens were collected by F. S. Beggiato and 18 by Pappafava. 518 specimens lack data on the collection location, and over 300 are from Vicenza area.
1027 specimens.
Valente Luigi Stefano Herbarium
Phanerogamic herbarium consisting of specimens collected between 1988 and 1993 in various provinces of Italy and the former Yugoslavia. Endemic specimens are included. The herbarium is mostly organized systematically. Dried specimens are organized by collection location.
485 specimens.
Antonio Dal Lago Herbarium
Collection of vascular species primarily from Vicenza area; composed of occasional collections.
712 specimens.
Rubus Herbarium - Pisana Costantin Thesis
This collection contains specimens used for the revision of the Rubus genus, which confirmed the following species to be present in Vicenza area: R. ulmifolius Scott, R. praecox Bertoloni, R. canescens DC., R. hirtus Waldst et Kit. aggr., R. caesius L., R. idaeus L., R. saxatilis L., R. phoenicolasius Maxim (escaped from cultivation), R. laciniatus Willd. (escaped from cultivation).
151 specimens.
Strobili
This collection was initially formed by Stefano Valente, who donated the first 31 specimens to the museum, and subsequently expanded by other collectors. For Valente's specimens, it is not clear whether the label corresponds to the species' chorology or the collection area. The names of four specimens are incorrect or nonexistent.
58 specimens.
Parasitism on vascular plants
It collects plant samples with galls and alterations of the plant structure by larvae and adult insects.
29 specimens.
Sante Zangiacomi Lichen Collection
Historical lichen collection that belonged to Sante Zangiacomi. It was discovered in the archaeological depot of Palazzo Chiericati during the reorganization of the collections from 1984 to 1990, which preceded the Museum's relocation to its new venue in Contrà S. Corona in September 1991. The specimens were stored on sheets of newspaper inside a wooden box.
218 specimens.