Textile Machine Museum

Valdagno

The Textile Machinery Museum is located in part of the Spinning, Preparing and Weaving Workshops of the 'Marzotto-Luzzatti' Higher Education Institute, built in 1936 by Count Gaetano Marzotto in the heart of the 'social city' of Valdagno, to train specialised workers on site in step with the continuous technological renewal of the 1940s and 1950s. By means of numerous machines and the exemplification of the various manufacturing processes, the museum recounts not only technological progress but also the entrepreneurial and artisanal skills that have profoundly marked the town of Valdagno and the surrounding area; the technological heritage is thus inserted into the economic and social, urban planning and environmental history of the entire valley.

The visit

The exhibition starts with a first section dedicated to the history of the Social City and the history of the Factory; a model of the school from the 1940s, found in the basement of the building, is also on display, highlighting the early organisation of the school's spaces. The tour continues with the presentation of the different textile fibres: from natural (animal and vegetable) to those obtained by chemical processes; alongside the most common ones, there are some rare and very precious samples. The next sections illustrate the salient phases of the wool production cycle: from succid wool to carded yarn, from combing and ironing the sliver to combed yarn, spooling and twisting. Finally, hand looms with a Jacquard machine for the production of woven fabrics, mechanical shuttle looms, looms for special processes (trimmings, climber's cords, non-woven fabrics, etc.) are on display. You can take a virtual tour at the following link: https://www.smart-museums.eu/it/museo_macchine_tessili

The history

The idea of creating the ‘Museum of Textile Machinery’ within the school was born in the second half of the 1990s as part of the programme to enhance the historical-industrial environment of the Upper Vicenza area initiated by the Consortium for the Integration of the Cities of Schio and Valdagno, which made available the expertise of its consultants in the museum and architectural fields.
Thus, a collaboration was initiated between external consultants and school teachers, especially those involved in the most relevant subjects, to draw up an executive project that was officially presented to the authorities and the public as part of a historical exhibition on wool processing in the Agno valley and the school, set up in the school premises. The event took place contextually to the inauguration of the Valdagno-Schio Tunnel (July 1999).
The financial burden for the construction of the Museum was partially taken on by the Valdagno Municipal Administration, which invited all those who had collaborated up to that point to create an Association for the purpose of completing the Museum’s construction and collaborating on its management.
On 24 March 2000, the Association of Friends of the Textile Museum was founded, recognised by the Institute Council on 3 May of the same year, which would actively collaborate in the setting up of the exhibition and the organisation of cultural activities.

The museum was the subject of an intervention as a ‘pilot museum’ in the SMART project. Small Museums Alliance Representing Territories, an Interreg Italy-Austria project, more information on which can be found at this link https://www.smart-museums.eu/it/museo_macchine_tessili

During school time, from Monday to Friday:

9:00-12:30 / 15:00-18:00;

Saturdays and school holidays: 9:00-12:30

Reservation is required.

Higher Education Institute “Marzotto-Luzzatti”
Telefono: 0445 401007 – 0445 401197
e-mail: viis022004@istruzione.it
sito web: http://www.mumatvaldagno.it

Visita virtuale

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