Museo della Guerra Bianca in Adamello

In Temù, the Museo della Guerra Bianca in Adamello preserves material connected with a war fought on glaciers. Objects recovered by volunteers from the Adamello tell of Italian and Austro-Hungarian soldiers facing one another above 3,000 metres, including men from valleys on both sides of the front.

Why it matters

The Adamello–Presanella front of the First World War crossed glaciers and ridges above 3,000 metres between 1915 and 1918. The museum preserves objects and images relating to that high-altitude conflict and to the communities whose soldiers fought on opposing sides. Its collection was assembled through years of volunteer recovery work on the Adamello.

What to notice

The museum's material includes Italian and Austro-Hungarian artillery, weapons, transport sleds, mountain equipment, uniforms and wartime photographs. These objects illuminate the practical demands of movement, shelter and survival in the high-altitude front. The collection also includes a film record from the Adamello campaign, alongside resources for the study of the Great War in the mountains.

Context and history

A group of volunteers led by Temù resident Sperandio Zani began recovering material and documents in 1974. A provisional museum opened in 1977; the collection was formally reopened in its Temù home on 26 August 1984. The association Amici del Museo della Guerra Bianca in Adamello continues the work of preserving and studying the material heritage of the First World War in Lombardy.