This museum is an essential stop for understanding the deep history of the city of Colle di Val d’Elsa, thanks to the richness and variety of its exhibits. Renovated and inaugurated in November 2025, it is a place that allows you to explore the ancient roots of Tuscany, from Prehistory to the Middle Ages.

The architectural complex known as Palazzo Pretorio (or Palazzo del Podestà) overlooks Piazza del Duomo. The result of complex construction history, from the beginning of the 14th century it housed the presiding podestà (magistrates) of the Terra di Colle, until 1336 when the Municipality ceded the palace to the Republic of Florence to adapt it into a stronghold.

Returning to its original function in 1417, it eventually became the seat of the magistrate’s court and the district prison. Since 1976, it has housed the Etruscan Antiquarium, which was transformed into the “Ranuccio Bianchi Bandinelli” Archaeological Museum in 1990.

The exhibition spaces, completely renovated in 1990, are spread over three floors: on the ground floor are the ancient detention cells, which in 2012 were joined into a route called the “Gracco Del Secco” Rooms of Memory; on the first floor are rooms fully frescoed with devotional images and coats of arms; on the second floor, surrounding a central hall with a wall still showing fragments of Renaissance decorations, are further exhibition spaces.

The tour is completed by the outdoor garden, which houses Sol LeWitt’s Concrete Block and where cultural events are organized during the summer.