Volterra Museum of Torture, History museum in Volterra, Italy.
The Volterra Museum of Torture is a history museum in a medieval town in Tuscany that displays more than one thousand historical and reconstructed devices. The collection spans instruments from different centuries of European judicial history and is supplemented by informational materials in multiple languages.
The museum preserves objects from the 16th and 17th centuries, supplemented by scholarly reconstructions made during the 19th and 20th centuries. This collection documents the evolution of punishment methods across several hundred years of European judicial history.
The collection reflects how European societies approached justice and punishment across different periods and regions. Visitors can observe the stark differences between judicial systems of various cultures and eras through the objects on display.
The museum is located in the old town and is easily accessible on foot, with clear signage in the streets. The rooms are compact, so visitors should expect limited space and conditions that underscore the subject matter.
Many of the displayed items were meticulously reconstructed by modern specialists based on historical texts and artwork. These recreations allow visitors to see complete and functional instruments that would otherwise survive only in fragments.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.