Paper and Watermark Museum Fabriano, Paper museum and technology center in Fabriano, Italy.
The Paper and Watermark Museum is housed in a converted Dominican convent and displays the complete process of papermaking with a working reconstruction of a medieval mill. The exhibition spaces walk you through each stage of production, from preparing raw materials to finishing sheets marked with different watermark patterns.
Fabriano became a major papermaking center in the 13th century after Arabic traders introduced advanced production techniques to the region. The town developed a reputation for innovation and eventually supplied high-quality paper to markets across Europe.
The name Fabriano comes from the Latin word 'faber', meaning craftsperson, reflecting the town's identity built around papermaking skills passed down through generations. You can sense this pride in the crafts throughout the exhibits, where the tools and methods show how central this work was to daily life.
The museum is located in the old town and open Tuesday through Sunday, with full wheelchair accessibility throughout the building. Plan to spend two to three hours exploring the exhibits and watching a demonstration of the working paper mill.
The museum preserves a fully working medieval paper mill where visitors can watch paper being made using methods nearly 800 years old. This live demonstration shows just how labor-intensive the craft truly was and why these techniques had such a profound impact on European history.
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