A competition in conjunction with Melbourne Museum's blockbuster exhibition A Day in Pompeii asked Melbournians to take photographs of what they think makes Melbourne Italian. The top entries go on display at the Museum until 25 October.

The Museum received nearly 200 entries that reveal the ways in which Italian culture is embedded in the rich fabric of Melbourne life through food and dining, design and language.

The winning photograph, 'Gelato' by Amy Calton of Northcote, captures a scene that is familiar to many Melburnians: people enjoying gelati in warm sunshine.

Italians have been part of Melburnian life since the early days of settlement. Hundreds were lured to Victoria in the 1850s gold rushes, and a century later, tens of thousands arrived in Melbourne to start a new life after World War II.

Today they are the second-largest immigrant community in Victoria after the English, with nearly one in ten Melburnians either born in Italy or having Italian parents.

Take a closer look at the impact of Italian culture on Melbourne at the exhibition.