Earth Sciences Museum in Siena

The Earth Sciences Museum forms part of the University of Siena Museum System (SIMUS), and contains the vital collections in geology, mineralology, petrography, cartography, palaeontology and anthropology that started being compiled in the 1960s by the Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences.

The collections have been organised and systematised over the years, with the fossils, minerals and rocks on display numbering in the thousands. This ensemble, which is kept for educational purposes, contains a significant collection of ornamental gemstones and some extremely important mineral specimens. One of the museum's highlights is a barite crystal more than 50cm long, a world first: it is the largest barite crystal of its kind yet found!