Museo Etnografico Giuseppe Fontana

"Confermo in toto quanto scritto dal sig. Giuseppe, parola per parola. La signora che ci ha ricevuto è stata da subito accomodante e coinvolgente, nonché estremamente disponibile. Da sappadina, ha saputo raccontare con autentico coinvolgimento personale ed estrema preparazione moltissime usanze e peculiarità del luogo, nozioni storiche, culturali, paesaggistiche e naturalistiche. La visita è gratuita, ma considerata la grande qualità insita nella stessa, viene davvero spontaneo fare un'offerta libera."

Marco

"Between the 1960s and 1970s, the founding maestro's concern to stem the ongoing dispersion of Sappada's cultural heritage led him to collect a significant number of objects, including agricultural tools, household items, and everyday objects. This led to the creation of an Ethnographic Museum, which was established in 1972 and expanded in subsequent years in a building in the Bach district. Upon his death in 1975, the Ethnographic Museum was named after him, and the collections have continued to grow ever since. In 1999, a geological and paleontological section was established, describing the valley's geological history. In 2009, the collections were expanded and moved to their new location in Cima Sappada.
In its new concept, the Ethnographic Museum offers a comprehensive journey from the natural environment to the identity of the community that settled and integrated there. Visitors are introduced to the geology, flora, and fauna of the Sappada valley, allowing them to understand the organic unity of the environment that hosted the first inhabitants in the Middle Ages. The display cases include samples of local rocks, fossils, a diorama reconstructing a natural habitat, and a birdlife sample. The walls and columns depict the main botanical species, used in cuisine and folk medicine, and the trees found in the valley, with their corresponding names in Sappada dialect and Italian. A historical section delves into the origins and history of the Sappada people up to the present day. The interesting life stories in the ethnographic collections demonstrate how the environment has shaped their habits: the relative isolation of the past, the particular climatic conditions, together with the community's unique identity as a German-speaking linguistic island, favored a frugal and nearly self-sufficient lifestyle, fostering the development of the so-called "wood culture." The valley's architectural styles, to which a dedicated section is dedicated, bear eloquent witness. Period images portray the people of Sappada, and several display cases display work and festive clothing, both for men and women.
The central section of the museum delves into Sappada's domestic life: it features everyday objects from rooms such as the kitchen, hallway, dining room, and bedroom. These objects have not been reconstructed because they can be visited in the Casa Museo della Civiltà Contadina, Sappada's second museum.
The main room houses the tools of agricultural, forestry, pastoral, and artisanal activities, representing the simple yet harsh existence of the Sappada people: from the woodcutter, to the section dedicated to snow, from the shepherd to the stable, the barn, and agricultural work, from transportation to the artisanal activities of the wheelwright, blacksmith, carpenter, and finally the shoemaker, tailor, and weaver. At the heart of the museum, as it once was at the heart of Sappada life, is the section illustrating popular religiosity during the most significant moments of the liturgical year. The exhibition concludes with the masks of the Sappada Carnival (vosenòcht), a tradition still alive in Sappada, among which the austere figure of Rollate stands out."

Paolo Cozzarizza

"A very interesting museum on the local toponymy, fauna and flora, and customs of the past and present. The lady was extremely kind and knowledgeable, entertaining us with warmth and unusual curiosity. Recommended visit. Free admission. Donations recommended."

Giuseppe M.