Friday, October 24, 2025, 5:00 PM.
The Little Museum of Natural History, in its temporary location at the Exhibition Space , will be presented to the public on Friday the 24th, at 5:00 pm, with a special conference - free of charge - by the director of the Civic Museums, Antonio Iommelli, with the naturalist Giulia Mazzocchi, on the theme "Wonderful Creatures: Animals in 17th-Century Courts and the First Natural History Collections".

The Little Museum of Natural History is the result of a collaboration between the City Council, the Directorate of the Civic Museums of Piacenza, the Piacenza Society of Natural Sciences, and the Piacenza and Vigevano Foundation. The goal is to ensure continuity for the Civic Museum of Natural History, its collections, and its activities during this time of transition.

The temporary exhibition will be housed in the Palazzo Farnese Exhibition Space and will offer a significant selection of the museum's holdings. Among the exhibits are the precious mineralogical (over 1,400 specimens from around the world) and malacological (fossil shell) collections donated by the Dosi and Della Marta families, respectively. The former is the fruit of Giovanni Dosi's fifty-year passion and research, and represents one of the most important mineralogical collections in Italy. The latter is a collection of fossil shells by Mario Della Marta, a self-taught enthusiast who involved numerous students in his research along the Stirone River. Approximately twenty highly valuable and interesting taxidermied animal specimens from around the world will also be on display, some of which will be on display for the first time.

Furthermore, in the space adjacent to the exhibition halls—inside Palazzo Farnese—a classroom will be set up to ensure the continuity of educational programs dedicated to local schools, for which the Natural History Museum represents a fundamental point of reference.

The Little Museum of Natural History will offer a rich program of 47 workshops divided by age group: 9 dedicated to nursery schools, 17 for primary schools, 12 for middle schools, and 9 for upper secondary schools.
The proposed themes will range across naturalistic, geological, and paleontological fields, also touching on biological topics. The primary focus will be on the Piacenza area, highlighting the characteristics that make it unique. Guided tours of the exhibition can also be booked.

Various events will then be proposed throughout the year for citizens.
For children, "Play and Learn" series will be organized: fun workshops that will engage participants with naturalistic topics addressed through games and hands-on activities. For adults, conferences will explore various aspects of nature, with discussions led by experts and enthusiasts.

Details of all initiatives will be published from time to time on the Palazzo Farnese website.

All outreach and educational initiatives are managed by the Piacenza Society of Natural Sciences, which has always managed the teaching and research of the Civic Museum of Natural History of Piacenza.

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