Museums and exhibitions
Museum Center "Antonio Cordici
Named after “Antonio Cordici”, it was established in 1876 and some archaeological finds belonging to various private collections were brought there. Since 2015 it has been permanently transferred to the new suitable and functional spaces of the former Convent of the Franciscan Friars Minor, for a modern enhancement of the archaeological, historical and artistic heritage of the City.
The Museum Center is divided into the following sections: archaeological, historical-artistic, weapons and contemporary art, with exhibition spaces dedicated to temporary exhibitions.
In the archaeological section there are finds from excavation campaigns of distinguished archaeologists, who tell the story of Erice in antiquity, both related to the cult of the goddess Astarte / Venus is the funerary world, with the findings of the equipment of the necropolis dated between the fourth and third centuries BC together with findings of the Norman-Swabian phase.
There is also a rich section of paintings and sculptures of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries from religious complexes, such as the exceptional Annunciation by Antonello Gagini (1525), which was in the Church of the Carmine, commissioned by a nobleman from Erice.
IMMERSIVE VENUS
Since 2024, the ‘A. Cordici’ museum centre has been enriched with a new and extraordinary experience: Venus Immersive, which draws the spectator into the heart of the myth of the goddess Venus.
This video installation offers a new and evocative narrative about the Venus Ericina.
The immersive room, with priming on walls and floor, transports the spectator into an experience rich in visual and auditory stimuli, with the aid of images of the artefacts found where the temple once stood, the words that classical authors used to describe the splendour of the Goddess' sites, and sounds that evoke the splendour of the ancient myth. A true emotional map to understand the cult of Venus over time and in the Erice area.
Full price tickets: 5,00 €
(10,00 € integrated ticket: Castle + Museum + Turret + Spanish Quarter + Erice in Miniature)
Reduced price ticket*: 2,00 €
(6,00 € integrated ticket: Castle + Museum + Torretta + Spanish Quarter + Erice in miniature)
*Children aged 11-16, over 65, tourist groups of no less than 15 and no more than 40, university students.
Groups or school groups over 40 units: 1,5 €; integrated 4 €.
Free admission: children up to 10 years old, the disabled.
Opening hours:
1 January - 31 March (Weekdays: by telephone reservation to be made at least 24 hours in advance)
1 April - 30 June: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
1 July - 30 September: 10:00 - 19:00
1 October - 31 October: 10:00 - 18:00
1 November - 31 December (Weekdays: by telephone booking to be made at least 24 hours in advance)
Saturdays and public holidays: 10:00 - 16:00