Museo Naturalistico Dolomiti Bellunesi

The Dolomiti Bellunesi Natural History Museum in Belluno brings together three historic herbaria associated with botanists who studied the mountains now protected within the national park. Its collection connects plant specimens with the history of botanical research in the Dolomites.

Why it matters

Opened in 2015 in a restored wing of Belluno's former fire-station barracks, the museum preserves collections assembled by Alessandro Francesco Sandi, Francesco Caldart and Cesare Lasen. The Lasen herbarium alone contains about 25,000 sheets. Agreements between the park authority, Fondazione Cariverona and the Comune di Belluno brought the three herbaria together in the city, making them a record of local scientific study and regional plant life.

What to notice

Pressed and labelled plants preserve evidence of species and collection history. Two digital stations provide access to images of delicate herbarium sheets, alongside botanical checklists and databases. Interactive displays trace the flora and vegetation of the protected area and the history of botanical exploration in the mountains, documented from the fifteenth century. The museum also includes a specialised library and a conference space.

Context and history

The museum occupies a former fire brigade barracks restored by the park authority with co-funding from the Veneto Region. Its collections bring together work spanning two centuries of botanical study in the Bellunese area. In addition to preserving scientific specimens, the museum interprets the flora and vegetation of the national park and the history of the people who documented them.