1473 Best Sights in Italy

This impressive museum exhibits brilliantly restored works by late-Gothic, Renaissance, and Neapolitan Baroque masters. It incorporates the Baroque church of Santa Maria Donnaregina Nuova, which was started in 1617 and consecrated 50 years later for Franciscan nuns (les Clarisses), and the Gothic Donnaregina Vecchia, which was damaged by an earthquake. In more modern times the building was used as legal offices before being closed completely, and becoming prey to the occasional theft as well as bomb damage during World War II. In 2008 the space was officially reborn as a museum.

The last two works of Luca Giordano, The Wedding at Cana and The Multiplication of Loaves, both from 1705, are displayed on either side of the church's altar, which was moved from the original church. The central painting focuses on the life of the Virgin Mary, while the first chapel on the left houses French painter Charles Mellin's beautiful Immaculate Conception (1646). To the left of the nave is a space rich in Gothic and Renaissance statuary from the former church. Take the elevator upstairs to where the nuns once attended Mass, concealed from the congregation by screens. The works on display there follow the theme of life as an Imitation of Christ. There is also the chance to see Francesco Solimena's 17th-century roof frescoes up close, with floodlights showing off their restoration to maximum effect.

Located inside the Palazzo Pretorio, the Museo Diocesano Tridentino is where you can see paintings and other objects that come from the treasury of the adjoining Cathedral of San Vigilio. This includes many carved wood altars and statues; an 11th-century sacramentary, or book of services; the seating plan of the prelates during the Council of Trent; and early-16th-century tapestries by Pieter van Aelst (1502–56), the Belgian artist who carried out Raphael's 15th-century designs for the Vatican tapestries. The palazzo itself was built in the 13th century and designed to seem like a wing of the Duomo; it became the fortified residence of the prince-bishops, who enjoyed considerable power and autonomy within the medieval hierarchy. The remarkable palazzo has lost none of its original splendor. Accessible through the museum, a subterranean archaeological area beneath the adjacent cathedral reveals remnants of the Early Christian Basilica of San Vigilio. You can also get good city views by climbing the 156 steps up the attached Torre di Piazza (Civic Tower), accessible only by guided tour.

On the hill near the Castello, this eclectic collection showcases statues from the Roman theater, mosaics, and a wealth of artifacts from Egypt, Greece, and Rome. There's also an assortment of glass and manuscripts. The Orto Lapidario (Lapidary Garden) has classical statuary, pottery, and a small Corinthian temple. The collection was renamed in 2018 after the pioneering art historian and Hellenist J. J. Winckelmann, who was murdered in Trieste in 1768.

Housed in the magnificent former monastery and abbey of Santa Maria in Porto, this municipal art collection with origins in the Napoleonic era has a core of 300 paintings and sculptures, with sections dedicated to late Middle Ages-early Renaissance pious works and the 16th and 17th century, to the Novecento and contemporary works. Seek out the archaic-looking, myth-inspired equine terra-cotta sculpture L’Assediato (1999) by Paladino that seems to span the ages. The collection is well displayed and artfully lighted, especially the vibrant contemporary mosaic section, plus there's the RavennaMosaico biennial among the changing shows.

The "dispersed museum" comprises three of the Ghetto's five synagogues (the 16th-century Tedesca, Canton, and Italiana) plus a compact, well-arranged museum that highlights centuries of Venetian Jewish culture. Among the artifacts on display are splendid silver Hanukkah lamps and Torahs, beautifully decorated wedding contracts handwritten in Hebrew, and an important library. The recently created and wonderful Giardino Segreto della Scuola Spagnola, a secret garden with rich plant life and a sukkah, is also open to the public occasionally. Tours of the Ghetto and its synagogues in Italian and English leave from the museum hourly.

The home of the much revered founder of the Ferrari automobile marque, Enzo Ferrari, has been imaginatively enlarged and converted into a museum dedicated to his life and work. Besides the various trophies and engines on display, visitors can view an a video that tells the Ferrari story and see the restored workshop belonging to Enzo's father, Alfredo, and, in a futuristic pavilion built alongside, a grand array of contemporary and vintage cars. A joint ticket is available with the Museo Ferrari in Maranello.

This superb private collection, beautifully arranged and presented, goes far beyond the usual smattering of local remains displayed at many museums. The collection is particularly rich in Greek- and Etruscan-era pottery, from large Attic amphorae (6th–4th century BC) to Attic black- and red-figure pieces to Etruscan bucchero (dark-reddish clay) vases. Other interesting items include a 6th-century sarcophagus and a substantial display of Roman-era coins.

This museum has become a pilgrimage site for auto enthusiasts. It takes you through the illustrious history of Ferrari, from early 1951 models to the present—the legendary F50 and cars driven by Michael Schumacher in Formula One victories being highlights. You can also take a look at the glamorous life of founder Enzo Ferrari (a re-creation of his office is on-site) and get a glance at the production process.

Across the river from Galileo's former home, a monumental sundial, installed in 2007, sits outside the Palazzo Castellani, one of the city's oldest palaces and now home to this museum dedicated to Renaissance scientists and inventors. The permanent collection features both objects and videos that enlighten you on innovations from the 14th to 17th centuries. Particularly intriguing is Antonio Santucci's armillary sphere, created in 1588 for Ferdinand I de' Medici, and an engraved geometric and military compass built by Galileo in 1606. A research library with more than 170,000 scientific books, from ancient to modern, is also open to the public.

A former Benedictine monastery near Piazza Repubblica is now the home of the Complesso Monumentale di San Pietro, a series of exhibition and conference rooms that include a collection of items relating to Giuseppe Garibaldi, the flamboyant hero of Italy's 19th-century war of independence. The resistance leader's name is ubiquitous in Marsala, for it was here that he disembarked his army of one thousand "red shirts" to battle against the Bourbons, a struggle that eventually led to a unified and independent Italy. Two rooms—including the monastery's former refectory—display guns, swords, busts, paintings, photographs, and uniforms from the campaign, including examples of the famous red shirts worn by Garibaldi's fiercely loyal followers. A box in the center of the room holds the guerrilla general's own pistol.

Other parts of the museum complex hold archaeological fragments from Roman hypogea and necropolis in the area as well as traditional masks and costumes worn in Marsala's Easter Thursday procession. The wide central courtyard is the venue for concerts and open-air movies in the summer.

Englishman Herbert P. Horne (1864–1916), architect, art historian, and collector, spent much of his life in his 15th-century palazzo surrounded by carefully culled paintings, sculptures, and other decorative arts mostly from the 14th to 16th century. His home has since been turned into a museum, and the jewel of the collection is Giotto's St. Stephen. The rest of the collection is decidedly B-list (he owned plenty of minor works by major artists such as Masaccio and Bernini), but it's still worth a visit to see how a gentleman lived in the 19th century. Many of the furnishings, such as the 15th-century lettuccio (divan), are exemplary.

One of the largest ceramics museums in the world has a well-labeled, well-lit collection, with objects from the Renaissance among its highlights. Although the emphasis is clearly on local work, the rest of Italy and the globe are also represented. Don't miss the 20th- and 21st-century galleries, which prove that decorative arts often surpass their practical limitations and become genuinely sculptural.

This collection of more than 4,000 masterpieces showcasing the traditional Opera dei Pupi (puppet show), both Sicilian and otherwise, will delight visitors of all ages with their glittering armor and fierce expressions. The free audio guide to the colorful displays is only available in Italian, but the well-designed exhibits include video clips of the puppets in action, which requires no translation. There are also regular live performances in the museum's theater (Monday 11 am and Tuesday–Saturday 5 pm), which center on the chivalric legends of troubadours of bygone times. The museum can be hard to find: look for the small alley just off Piazzetta Antonio Pasqualino 5.

The music museum in the spectacular Palazzo Aldini-Sanguinetti, with its 17th- and 18th-century frescoes, offers among its exhibits a 1606 harpsichord and a collection of beautiful music manuscripts dating from the 1500s.

Museo Leonardiano, atop the castle belonging to the Guidi family in the historic center of Vinci, has replicas of many of Leonardo's machines and gadgets. The stunning country views most likely influenced the artist, as some of his painted backgrounds suggest the hills of Vinci.

This museum displays the private collection of Baron Enrico Pirajno di Mandralisca, a member of a local aristocratic family. Throughout his life, Mandralisca collected antiques, artwork, fossils, ancient ceramics, and various other geological and natural history objects to form this extensive collection. His library and other items were eventually donated to the town and became this museum. The most significant piece of art here has to be the Portrait of an Unknown Man by Antonello da Messina. Sometimes called the "Sicilian Mona Lisa," the portrait of a mysteriously smirking man is one of the early Renaissance artist's masterpieces.

A 21-foot-tall bronze horse and rider, one of the major works by artist Marino Marini (1901–80), dominates the space of the main gallery here. The museum itself is an eruption of contemporary design in a deconsecrated 9th-century church, and a series of open stairways, walkways, and balconies let you peer at Marini's work from all angles. In addition to his Etruscanesque sculpture, the museum houses Marini's paintings, drawings, and engravings. The Cappella Rucellai, commissioned by one of Florence's most powerful families, shows Renaissance man Leon Battista Alberti (1404--72) at the height of his architectural powers.

On the top floor of the Palazzo Primoli—the same building (separate entrance) that houses the Museo Napoleonico—is one of Rome's most unusual museums. As if preserved in amber, the apartment in which the famous Italian essayist Mario Praz lived survives intact, decorated with a lifetime's accumulation of delightful Baroque and neoclassical art and antiques, arranged and rearranged to create symmetries that take the visitor by surprise like the best trompe-l'oeil. As author of The Romantic Sensibility and A History of Interior Decoration, Praz was fabled for his taste for the arcane and the bizarre; here his reputation for the same lives on. You are obliged to follow a custodian through the museum; the visit starts on the hour and takes about 50 minutes.

Opulent, velvet-and-crystal salons in the Palazzo Primoli hauntingly capture the fragile charm of early-19th-century Rome and contain a specialized and rich collection of Napoléon memorabilia, including a bust by Canova of the general's sister, Pauline Borghese. You may well ask why this outpost of Napoléon is in Rome, but in 1798 the French emperor sent his troops to Rome, kidnapping Pope Pius VII and proclaiming his young son the King of Rome—though it all ultimately came to naught.

This converted cloister is best known for the collection of models based on Leonardo da Vinci's sketches. One of the most visited rooms features interactive, moving models of the famous vita aerea (aerial screw) and ala battente (beating wing), thought to be forerunners of the modern helicopter and airplane, respectively. The museum also houses a varied collection of industrial artifacts, including trains, and several reconstructed workshops, including a watchmaker's, a lute maker's, and an antique pharmacy.

The collection of ornate religious objects and multimedia installations at this museum (commonly known as MEIS) bears witness to the long history of the city's Jewish community. This history had its high points—1492, for example, when Ercole I invited the Jews to come over from Spain—and its lows, notably 1627, when Jews were enclosed within the ghetto, where they were forced to live until the advent of a united Italy in 1860. The triangular warren of narrow cobbled streets that made up the ghetto originally extended as far as Corso Giovecca (originally Corso Giudecca, or Ghetto Street). When it was enclosed, the neighborhood was restricted to the area between Via Scienze, Via Contrari, and Via di San Romano. The museum is located about a 15-minute walk from the former Jewish ghetto. Guided tours may be booked in advance by emailing or calling the museum.

Highlights here include the lovely Portrait of a Youth by Pontormo; portraits of the Medici painted by Bronzino (1503–72); and paintings by Tintoretto, Vasari, and others.

Next to the Church of San Vitale and housed in a former Benedictine monastery, the museum contains artifacts from ancient Rome, Byzantine fabrics and carvings, and pieces of early Christian art. Curiosities include remains of the city's gate Porta Aurea (AD 44) and 14th-century "Giotto School" frescoes by Pietro da Rimini.

On the north bank of the Arno, this museum contains some beautiful examples of local Romanesque and Gothic art. Despite the fact that it has stunning works by Donatello and Benozzo Gozzoli (among others), here you'll find very few other visitors.

Although this museum presents a noteworthy overview of Lucca's artistic traditions up through the 17th century, you might find few other visitors exploring its extensive collections of local Etruscan, Roman, Romanesque, and Renaissance art. It's all housed in the 15th-century former villa of the Guinigi family, on the eastern end of the historic center.

Most of the artifacts found during the excavations of Chiusi's Etruscan sites are now on display in this small but expertly laid out museum. Relics include elegant Etruscan and Greek vases, carved Etruscan tomb chests, and a number of the strange canopic jars with anthropomorphic shapes that are unique to this area.

The tombs themselves can be seen by arrangement with the museum—sometimes. (You're accompanied by museum personnel, and staff shortages have led to tomb closures.) These underground burial chambers are still evocative of ancient life, particularly in the Tomba della Scimmia (Tomb of the Monkey), where well-preserved frescoes depict scenes from ordinary life 2,500 years ago. The Tomba del Leone (Tomb of the Lion) and Tomba della Pellegrina (Tomb of the Pilgrim) might also be open at set times during museum hours.

Named after local 19th-century medical doctor Domenico Ridola, who investigated archaeological sites in the surrounding area, this seat of the MNM highlights his excavations of the remains of Paleolithic and Neolithic settlements, as well as a richly endowed 4th-century-BC tomb. Ridola's finds are on view in the museum, which is housed in the former monastery of Santa Chiara. The collection includes an extensive selection of prehistoric and classical artifacts, notably Bronze Age implements and beautifully decorated red-figure pottery from Magna Graecia.

Housed within the handsome 17th-century Palazzo Lanfranchi, this part of the MNM is divided into three contrasting thematic sections: Sacred Art, Collectibles, and Contemporary Art. You may want to skim through the many restored artifacts from Basilicata's churches and the 300-plus works of the Neapolitan school: the main attraction are the 70-plus paintings of Carlo Levi and his must-stop-to-absorb humanist masterpiece Lucania '61. MNM also manages the Former Hospital of San Rocco (founded in 1348 and rebuilt in 1610), at Via San Biagio 31. It's worth visiting if you buy the cumulative ticket (€3 otherwise) for its fascinating history, architecture, and changing exhibitions.  

In the 13th-century, it began life as a Franciscan hostel offering shelter to tired pilgrims. It later became a convalescent home, and, in the late 18th century, it was a school for poor girls. Now the former Ospedale di San Paolo houses a museum devoted to Italian art of the 20th century. Most of its artists are not exactly household names, but the museum is so beautifully done that it’s worth a visit. The second floor contains works from the second half of the century; start on the third floor, and go directly to the collection of Alberto della Ragione, a naval engineer determined to be on the cutting edge of art collecting. The museum frequently hosts temporary exhibitions of very contemporary art.

It began life as a 13th-century Franciscan hostel offering shelter to tired pilgrims. It later became a convalescent home, and in the late 18th century it was a school for poor girls. Now the former Ospedale di San Paolo houses a museum devoted to Italian art of the 20th century. Admittedly, most of these artists are not exactly household names, but the museum is so beautifully well done that it's worth a visit. The second floor contains works by artists from the second half of the century; start on the third floor and go directly to the collection of Alberto della Ragione, a naval engineer who was determined to be on the cutting edge of art collecting.