MuCa – “Museo della Cantieristica” – Museum of Shipbuilding Industry
The MuCa – “Museo della Cantieristica” (Museum of Shipbuilding Industry) of Monfalcone is the only museum dedicated to this topic in Italy. Inaugurated in 2017 the museum is located on the groundfloor of the former “Hotel for workers” in the Panzano district, the “company town” built around the Shipyard on the initiative of the Cosulich, its first owners. It shows over a century through historical testimonies and documents, using the latest multimedia technologies. During World War II the building has been heavily bombed, in 2010 restored, and redeveloped: this project aimed to keep unaltered the charm of the imposing building, preserving its original features. The MuCa exhibition route is divided into 4 Thematic Areas further divided into Thematic Subareas and Special Areas: the city, the yards, the factory labour and ships.
Part of the route
The exhibition of the museum covers 4 different themes articulated in 15 rooms:
Site’s history
The building was designed by the engineer Dante Fornasir in the early ‘20s to host the unmarried workers. Heavily damaged by the bombing during the second World War the Albergo Operai has been restored in order to keep its original features. An important turning point for Monfalcone was the construction, between 1907 and 1908, of the Cantiere Navale Triestino by the Cosulich, a family of owners originally from the island of Lošinj and transplanted to Trieste. Until then, the Cosulichs had ordered the new ships from UK shipyards, which were at the forefront of the industry. Thanks to the economic incentives of the Austro-Hungarian government, which aspired to increase the fleet of the Empire, I decided to build their own shipyard. The Monfalcone area had all the necessary requisites for the establishment of a shipbuilding industry. The land was at a good price and the advantages of the Panzano area were considerable: bordered by the Valentinis navigable canal fed by the fresh water of the Canale Dottori, it allowed an optimal conservation of the hulls of the ships under construction. For the supply of raw materials, Monfalcone was connected to the rest of the Empire by an efficient railway network. Labors was also cheap, even if the staff were unskilled. For this reason, the Cosulichs called in around two hundred specialist technicians from the UK, coordinators from the yard’s technical director, James Stewart from Scotland. The rest of the workers of the Triestino Shipyard consisted of Slovenian, Croatian, Istrian workers and local farmers who, to escape their disadvantaged condition, went to the gates of the factory where they were recruited by the day by the master builders of the various departments. The S.p.A. Cantiere Triestino was founded in the naval world on 3 April 1908. On 16 December of the same year the steamship Trieste happily went down to sea, marking the beginning of an industrial activity that would have made Monfalcone famous in.
Outdoor visits to the company Town and Fincantieri Naval Shipyard visits
The MuCa site, the company town around the Museum and the Shipyard are a precious example of alive factory, preserving the first intended use, with its alive company town and reality. Thanks to MuCa App (IOS and Android), download a free from all the online stores, it’s possible to discover the heritage of our territory following different outdoor routes, designed to touch the most relevant places of the Panzano village (the villas, the stadium and the famous worker’s houses). There is also a real walk every Sunday morning trough the company town architectures and there are also guided tours of Fincantieri Shipyard in fixed dates. This kind of tour will lead visitors through the museum and inside the productive site of Monfalcone Shipyard, where visitors can admire some among the biggest cruise ships under construction.
MuCa for schools
The museum offers different educational options of guided tours and laboratories dedicated to schools of every grade. Activities of this kind are planned also for associations, groups and families. The activities are usually divided in two parts: at first a short guided tour of the Museum, then a specific workshop activity, such as painting, embroidery, recycling, animated readings and theatrical role-playing games.
Opening hours
Winter (September to May)
Monday 10am – 6pm – From Friday to Saturday 10am – 6pm
Summer (June to September)
Monday 10am – 7pm – From Friday to Saturday 10am – 7pm
Service facilities
Tickets
FULL PRICE TICKET: € 7,00
REDUCED TICKET: € 5,00 over 65, under 25, university student, schoolchildren groups, those born and/or residing in Monfalcone, Civil Service volunteers, FAI members, MiBAC professionals, Municipal Museum officers, police
FREE ADMISSION children up to 5 years, ICOM and ICCROM members, FVG Card holders, disabled and accompanying people, accompanying teachers, tour guides and interpreters, group leaders, military officers of Cultural Heritage Protection Command
FAMILY OFFER reduced ticket for all family members (families composed by two adults and at least one minor)
First Sunday of the month free admission for those born and/or residing in Monfalcone with valid ID
GUIDED TOURS
Single €4,00 in addition to the reduced – rate ticket for single or groups of less than 10 people.
Groups € 60,00 price ticket for the guided tour (for groups between 10 and 35 people) + € 1,00 each participant BY RESERVATION
Extraordinary openings are possible for groups and school groups, at least with two weeks of notice. The ticket service and access to the museum end 30 minutes before closing time. Tickets are valid the whole day and give the right to freely visit the whole museum. The entire museum is accessible to disabled people and people with reduced mobility
HOW YOU CAN FIND US:
Link to tourism organization:
Monfalcone Eventi: https://www.facebook.com/monfalconeeventi/
Monfalcone Turismo: https://www.turismofvg.it/monfalcone
Related links:
https://www.aipaipatrimonioindustriale.com/
https://www.erih.net/i-want-to-go-there/site/muca-museum-of-shipbuilding-industry
https://www.piccolimusei.com/risultati/
