by Nina Vaclavikova
Interviews: Gabriele Rota, Aurora Tiriticco – students, Anna Krekic, curator of Castello di San Giusto
A new initiative at San Giusto Castle is making the city’s most prominent historic landmark more accessible to German-speaking visitors.
At a press conference held Thursday, city officials announced the completion of Il Museo incontra la scuola (“The Museum Meets the School”), a project that engaged students from Liceo Petrarca in Trieste in translating museum panels into German. Until now, information at the castle — which receives a significant number of German-speaking tourists each year — was available only in Italian and English.
The project was carried out in collaboration with the City of Trieste, the Castle of San Giusto Museum, and the DeutschZentrum Triest (a cultural partner of the Goethe-Institut), which supported the initiative both financially and organizationally. The new translations are available in a printed brochure and through the museum’s recently introduced digital audio guide.
“This work represents a very important step for the castle,” said Anna Krekic, curator of San Giusto Castle, who praised the students’ effort. “Thanks to their translations, we can now provide a resource that many of our visitors have been requesting for years.”
City Councillor for Culture and Tourism Giorgio Rossi commended the students, describing the collaboration as a model for linking public institutions with local schools. “You have given us a fresh perspective,” he told them. “It is vital to continue this relationship, because you will be the future citizens responsible for our society.”
The students, all from the fourth-year German class at Liceo Petrarca, worked under the supervision of teachers Serena Burgher and Adriana Sulli, alongside internal tutor Alessandra Ticini and with guidance from Krekic. Their weeklong residency at the castle in March simulated professional translation work, providing them with both practical skills and exposure to the museum sector.
The outcome is a brochure designed to accompany visitors along the exhibition path, which includes both the castle’s interior armory and its outdoor spaces. Visitors can borrow the guide free of charge during their visit or access the same content digitally on their mobile devices.
The initiative marks the third phase of the city’s ongoing translation program involving its civic museums. Previous collaborations with local schools produced German-language materials for the Sartorio Museum and the Carlo Schmidl Theater Museum. Officials expressed hope that similar projects will continue in the future.
By combining cultural preservation with education, the program underscores the city’s commitment to making Trieste’s heritage more accessible, while also offering students the opportunity to apply their studies in a real-world setting.
For more information: www.castellodisangiustotrieste.it
