The Balzi Rossi are located at the western end of Liguria, a few steps from the border with France and are one of the most famous prehistoric sites in Europe. They include a series of caves ("Bausi" or "holes" in the dialect, transformed into Italian in "Balzi") that open at the foot of a rocky limestone cliff.
This place has witnessed many variations in sea level that 100,000 years ago was 120 meters lower than today. The Balzi Rossi area has been frequented by prehistoric man for a period of time ranging from the Lower Paleolithic (about 230,000 years ago) to the Upper Paleolithic (about 10,000 years ago): in the caves and out of them they accumulated during the millennia large deposits rich in faunal remains and lithic artifacts, as well as important burials, found thanks to centuries of archaeological excavations. The most important materials preserved in the museum include in particular the skeletal remains found in different types of burials and an extraordinary collection of casts of female statues, the most articulated group of "Paleolithic venus" found in Europe. The route also includes a visit to the caves areas.
The archaeological research of the Balzi Rossi, already started in the first half of the 800, still continues today. The location of the site on the Italian-French border meant that the investigations were conducted by international scientific teams. This situation has caused the dispersion of many artifacts in various museums in Italy and abroad and in private collections (Paris, Monaco, Menton, Montreal).