Intorno a Minerva Project
At the end of the 1st century BC, the Sanctuary of Minerva at Breno in northern Italy was built on an earlier indigenous sacred site. The two traditions coexisted peacefully for around a century. The Roman temple, located in the area known for the UNESCO World Heritage landscape of the Rock Art of Valle Camonica, offers a rare archaeological example of contact between cultures.
The Intorno a Minerva project, developed by the K-Pax Social Cooperative and the Italian Ministry of Culture’s Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the provinces of Bergamo and Brescia, took this history as its starting point and changed the park’s narrative. The archaeological site has been transformed into a communal space where heritage encourages intercultural dialogue and public participation.
A key moment came in 2022, when archaeologists and political refugees worked together to uncover a large pre-Roman altar that had once stood beside the Roman one. The renewed Archaeological Park was inaugurated at dawn on 19 June 2022, close to World Refugee Day, during the European Archaeology Days. The event linked the sanctuary’s history of coexistence to present-day discussions on migration and intercultural dialogue.
Since then, the park has become a meeting place for different communities and disciplines. Study meetings, lectures and public debates explore themes of cultural contact, identity, borders and bridges. Schools and universities participate in visits and educational programmes. Local municipalities, associations and religious communities contribute to initiatives dedicated to peace and dialogue. Cultural events, such as readings, theatre performances and concerts, take place throughout the year. Participants include refugees and migrants, students, scholars and local volunteers.
The Intorno a Minerva project also strengthened the surrounding landscape. Environmental improvements were carried out around the sanctuary while the cycle path along the Oglio River was renovated. The route links the Archaeological Park with the neighbouring municipalities. In 2023 the Italian Red Cross recognised the site with the Blue Shield of Culture, acknowledging the park as a place where heritage and civic engagement come together.
The project is ongoing, with the support of the municipalities of Breno, Cividate Camuno and Malegno and the Valle Camonica Mountain Community. It operates with annual resources of less than €10,000 and relies on cooperation between public institutions and third-sector organisations.
The Awards’ Jury stated: “The Intorno a Minerva project presents an innovative intercultural and interreligious approach to heritage. By bringing together refugees and local communities through archaeological work and public activities, it offers a rare model of social integration in an archaeological context. Inclusiveness forms the basis of the project and guides its public engagement.”
Contact: Serena Solano | Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the provinces of Bergamo and Brescia | serenarosa.solano@cultura.gov.it | www.k-pax.eu/intorno-a-minerva