The Capitoline Museum in Rome, the Vatican Museum, the Archaeological Museum in Florence and the Archaeology Museum in Naples, are home to archaeological wonders from several cultures, including Egypt, Greece, the Etruscans and Rome. Explore treasures from the Renaissance and Baroque periods produced by Italian masters such as Michelangelo, Caravaggio, Bernini, and Tintoretto.
If visitors immerse themselves in the splendor of these collections, then visitors can cultivate a more comprehensive and meaningful understanding of art history and the evolution of Italy over millennia. Discover what these splendid museums have to offer when you embark upon a journey into storied antiquity.
Capitoline Museums
The Capitoline Museums (Musei Capitolini), feature a range of architectural wonders, principally from ancient Rome, Greece and Egypt. Highlights of the collection include Head of the Colossal Statue of Constantine I, Bust of Alexander-Helios, Bust of Augustus and the Capitoline Wolf. The museum consists of three buildings surrounding the Piazza del Campidoglio. Originating in 1471, the Capitoline Museums received a donation from Pope Sixtus IV of bronze pieces. Almost three centuries later, under the guidance of Pope Clement XII, the Capitoline Museums became the first public museum in world history. The museum is free to all visitors on the first Sunday of each month and is located in central Rome.
Vatican Museum
Also in Rome, the Vatican Museum offers a collection of antiquities, particularly from Egypt. The Gregorian Egyptian Museum offers a unique perspective on the impact of Egyptian civilization on Rome. Consisting of several rooms, the museum features pieces from funerary rituals as well as a reconstruction of the Canopus in Hadrian’s Villa. The Vatican Museum was established in the early 19th century under the vision of Pope Gregory XVI. The collection itself was curated initially by the esteemed Egyptologist, Father Luigi Ungarelli, who studied under the master Ippolito Rosellini.
Moreover, the architectural motifs and decorations aim to recreate the setting of the Nile River. Located in central Rome, the Vatican Museum is reachable by taxi or public transportation from the Capitoline Museum or on foot along the scenic Tiber River.
Archaeological Museum of Florence
Noted for its collection of Etruscan and Egyptian antiquities, the Archaeological Museum of Florence features exquisite Roman and Greek relics as well. In fact, the collection of Egyptian pieces is the second largest in Italy behind the Turin Egyptian Museum. Hallmark works of the institution in Florence include: the Etruscan Polychrome Sarcophagus of Letitia Saeianti, the Stela of Gedhor dating back to the Ptolemaic Period, Funerary Stela of Ibi from the Middle Kingdom and the Greek statue Kouros of Milani from 530 BC. Throughout time, the museum has been a source of inspiration for artists, including Alberto Giacometti, whose signature style was shaped by the Egyptian antiquities he viewed at the institution. The space opened in 1870 during the reign of King Victor Emmanuel II in a palazzo built for a Medici princess in the 17th century. Located in the historic center of Florence, the museum is reached easily on foot, taxi or public transportation from a selection of accommodation options.
Naples Archaeological Museum
To the south in Naples, the Archaeological Museum of Naples features a splendid collection of antiquities from Rome, Greece and Egypt. Particularly, Roman artifacts excavated from the lost city-states of Herculaneum, Pompeii and Satbiae serve as collection highlights. Specific pieces of note include: the Farnese Cup, a Ptolemaic bowl consisting of sardonyx agate, the Venus Kallipygos, the Alexander Mosaic from approximately 100 BC and a fresco depicting Achilles’ Surrender of Briseis to Agamemnon, from the House of the Tragic Poet collected in Pompeii from the 1st century AD.
The collection at the museum originated from the esteemed Farnese Collection, housed in the wondrous Bourbon palazzo. Access to the museum in central Naples is made easy via taxi, public transportation and pedestrian walkway. Transportation between Rome, Florence and Naples is made easy through the Italian rail network, flight or highway.
Other Archaeology Institutions in Italy
In addition to the aforementioned museums, several other institutions within Italy feature splendid archaeological treasures. Just outside of Naples, see the ruins of Pompeii at the Archaeological Park. Farther south in Sicily, the archaeological museum and park in Siracusa houses treasures, including the Greek theater from the 5th century. Back on the Italian mainland in Venice, the archaeological museum in the city, residing on the Piazza San Marco, features works from ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt and Assyria-Babylonia.
Cover photo by Musei Capitolini
Written April 2020
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