History museums in Rome

The Vatican Museums, situated in Vatican City, are recognized as some of the largest museums globally. They were constructed by the Roman Catholic Church during the Renaissance period and are renowned for housing a vast collection of significant sculptures. These museums offer a unique opportunity to explore the rich history and artistic heritage of the Catholic Church.

Originally built in the second century AD by the Roman emperor Hadrian as his mausoleum, in the 14th century, it was decided that the building should be turned into a castle and a special corridor was added in order to connect the castle with St. Peter’s Basilica. Today, the castle serves as a museu

The Palazzo Bonaparte, previously known as D'Aste Rinuccini, is a historical palace located in the Pigna district of Rome, with a view overlooking Piazza Venezia. This location offers visitors a chance to experience the rich history of Rome, while also enjoying the bustling atmosphere of the Piazza Venezia.

More than five centuries old, the Musei Capitolini, the Capitoline Museums (which is a single museum) was the oldest public museum in the world, composed of three main buildings (the Palazzo Senatorio, the Palazzo dei Conservatori, and the Palazzo Nuovo) surrounding the Piazza del Campidoglio and li

The Galleria Doria Pamphilj is a museum in Rome, housed in the Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, the palace of the Doria family (who still lives there), which could very well be the largest in Rome still in private ownership. The museum mainly exhibits paintings. However the collection contains paintings, fur

The Domus Aurea, literally translated as the 'House of Gold', was a grand palace constructed by Emperor Nero on the Oppian Hill in the heart of ancient Rome. This construction was initiated after the great fire of 64 AD. The palace was a symbol of opulence and extravagance, with its luxurious inlays of gold, precious stones, and ivory.

The Jewish Museum of Rome is situated within the monumental complex of the Great Synagogue. This location is historically significant as it was built in the area that was once the Jewish ghetto of Rome. This provides visitors with a unique opportunity to explore the rich history and heritage of the Jewish community in Rome, right where it all began.

The Pantheon is an ancient temple in Rome, rebuilt in the 2nd century AD. It is one of the best-preserved Roman buildings in the world, thanks to its transformation into a church in the 7th century and its continuous use and maintenance since then. This makes it a unique historical site that offers a glimpse into the architectural prowess of the ancient Romans.

The Stadium of Domitian, also known as the Circus Agonalis, is a significant historical site located to the north of the Campus Martius in Rome, Italy. This ancient stadium was commissioned around AD 80 by Emperor Titus Flavius Domitianus as a gift to the people of Rome and was primarily used for athletic contests. Today, it stands as a testament to Rome's rich history and architectural prowess.

The Catacombs of Priscilla are situated along the Salaria road in Rome, with the entrance located opposite Villa Ada. This ancient burial site, named after the woman who likely donated the land for its creation, offers a unique glimpse into the history of Rome from the 2nd to the 5th century. The catacombs were carved into tuff, a type of rock, and extend for 13 kilometers underground.

The Baths of Diocletian (Thermae Diocletiani) was a large public thermal complex in ancient Rome. The Baths of Diocletian were located on the summit of the Viminal. The complex was built from 298, commissioned by Emperor Maximian and was inaugurated in 306. Since Maximian was in power the lesser of

The Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia is the National Etruscan Museum in Rome, housed in the Villa Giulia that was built for pope Julius III. The first rooms of the museum feature artefacts organized according to a double principle: topographical and chronological. Furthermore, the museum incl

The Museum and Crypt of Capuchins is located in a crypt under the church Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappuccini. The museum presents bones of nearly 4000 Capuchin friars stored in the crypt. The bones are arranged into macabre decorations. The Capuchins have been using the church since 1631. So

The Ara Pacis museum (or Museum of the Ara Pacis) is a museum in Rome that houses the Ara Pacis of Augustus, an ancient monument that was initially inaugurated on January 30, 9 B.C. The Ara Pacis Augustae is an altar dedicated to the Roman goddess of peace: Pax. It was commissioned by the Roman Sena

The Villa Farnesina is a country house in Rome from the beginning of the 16th century. It is built in a U-shape and is located in the spaciously laid-out Farnese garden. The villa was built between 1506 and 1510 for the rich sienese banker Agostino Chigi. It is a masterpiece in which architectural d

The Jewish Museum of Rome is situated in the basement of the Great Synagogue of Rome. The museum is dedicated to the history of the Jewish presence in Rome, which began in the second century BCE, but it also presents works of art produced by this Jewish community. A visit to the museum includes a gu

Saint Agnes Outside the Walls, also known as Sant'Agnese fuori le mura, is a titular church and minor basilica in Rome. It is situated on a slope that descends from the Via Nomentana. This location offers a unique perspective of the city and the surrounding area.

Case Romane del Celio refers to the remains of a Roman residential complex below the Basilica dei Santi Giovanni e Paolo in the Celio district in Rome. There are many frescoes to be seen from different times and with different iconographic intentions. After a long restoration a museum opened here th

St. Peter's Basilica, known in Italian as Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano, is one of the world's largest church buildings. It is a significant site within Catholicism and serves as the center of the Roman Catholic Church. Despite not being a cathedral, it holds a unique position in the Christian world and is considered one of the holiest sites in Catholicism.

The Catacombs of San Sebastiano, located in Rome, are one of the few Christian cemeteries that remain accessible to the public. This historical site offers a unique glimpse into the past, with its ancient murals, sarcophagi, and relics. Visitors can explore the catacombs through a series of galleries and cubicles, descending into the depths of the site to discover its many treasures.

Santa Maria in Via Lata is a church located on the Via del Corso in Rome, Italy. It is situated diagonally across from the church of San Marcello al Corso. This location makes it easily accessible for tourists exploring the city.

The Museo Nazionale di Palazzo di Venezia is a museum in Rome that is housed in the Barbo apartments of Palazzo Venezia. In addition to some rooms with their original furnishings, the museum houses a collection of important paintings from the 14th to 15th centuries, tapestries, ceramics, majolica, J

La Crypta Balbi is a complex connected to the ancient theater of Balbo in Rome. Today it is one of the headquarters of the National Roman Museum. The Theatre of Balbus was an ancient Roman structure in the Campus Martius of Rome that was built in 13 BC by proconsul Lucius Cornelius Balbus (minor). T

The Casina delle Civette (House of the Little Owls) is a result of a series of additions to a building that was intended as a refuge from the formality of the main villa on the grounds, Villa Torlonia, a villa in Rome with surrounding gardens which used to belong to the Torlonia family, of which con

Museo Napoleonico is a museum in Rome that holds and exhibits a collection that was donated in 1927 by Count Giuseppe Primoli, a descendant of Napoleon. The museum houses various portraits and objects, but also interiors from the Neapolitan era. The collections of the Museo Napoleonico are divided i

The Museo Storico della Liberazione is the Museum of the Liberation of Rome that occupies three floors in an apartment building where it illustrates the period of German occupation of Rome in World War II as well as its liberation. The building was used as the headquarters of the Sicherheitspolizei,

The Museo di Roma is a museum in Rome that was founded in the Fascist era to document the history and traditions of the so called "old Rome". Nowadays however, it is principally an art museum. The Museo di Roma holds works by artists including Pompeo Batoni, Giuseppe Bottani, Ippolito Caffi, Antonio

The Museo Nazionale dell'Alto Medioevo (The National Museum of the High Middle Ages, MAME) is a state museum in Rome that is housed in the Palazzo delle Scienze. The museum was inaugurated in 1967 to become an archaeological museum dedicated to the High Middle Ages starting from the post-classical a

Villa Torlonia is a villa in Rome with surrounding gardens which used to belong to the Torlonia family. Mussolini rented Villa Torlonia from the family for one lira a year to use as his state residence from the 1920s onwards. Nowadays it is a museum: Musei di Villa Torlonia. The museum in the villa

Museo Hendrik Christian Andersen is a museum in Rome in Italy, the place where Hendrik Christian Andersen died in 1940. After his death, he donated his home, studio, papers and more than 400 pieces of his work so this museum could be created. The Hendrik Christian Andersen Museum in Rome contains mu

The Porta San Sebastiano (the ancient Porta Appia) is the largest and one of the best-preserved gate that passes through the Aurelian wall in Rome. Directly behind the gate stands the Arch of Drusus, which belonged to the aqueduct Aqua Marcia. The large gate was rebuilt five times. Nowadays, the tow

The Pigorini National Museum of Prehistory and Ethnography (Museo Nazionale Preistorico Etnografico "Luigi Pigorini") is la museum in Rome. Divided into two separate sections, the museum is spread over three floors and presents on the one hand a large collection of objects of non-European ethnograph

The Historical Museum of the Carabinieri (Museo Storico dell'Arma dei Carabinieri) is a museum in Rome near the Vatican. This Police Museum in Rome illustrates its history chronologically and thematically, starting from the foundation in 1814 of the ancient Corps of Royal Carabinieri, through to the

Museo di Roma in Trastevere is a museum in Rome that is housed in the restored Carmelite convent of Sant'Egidio. The museum holds and exhibits a collection that illustrates the recent culture of Rome, with the help of life-size models. The main focus is on Roman life in the late eighteenth and ninet

The Museo della Civiltà Romana is a large museum in Rome that features one of the most wholesome collections of artefacts and artworks devoted to the history of Roman civilisation. It was first opened in 1955 and today spans over more than 12 000 square meters. The items on display here are divided

The Central Museum of the Risorgimento at the Vittoriano in Rome (Museo centrale del Risorgimento al Vittoriano) is an exhibition space built in 1935 and opened to the public in 1970. It is dedicated to the Risorgimento era and located in a building to the left of the Vittoriano, at the back of the

Museo della Via Ostiense is a museum in Rome, housed in the former Porta San Paolo city gate. The museum was built in 1954 to illustrate the topography of the area between Rome and Ostia. Important finds related to the ancient Via Ostiense connecting route between Rome and Ostia and a model depictin

The Casa di Goethe is a museum and cultural center in Rome dedicated to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and his Italian journey. With the permanent exhibition 'Goethe in Italy' and two to four temporary exhibitions per year, this Goethe museum in Rome recalls Goethe's Italian experience and the tradition

The Museo Palatino is a museum in Italy that illustrates the history of the Palatine hill. Inside, you will find interesting historical artefacts unearthed on some of the archaeological digs that took place here. Highlights include a number of imperial portraits, including a picture of the famous ma

The Museum of Casal de 'Pazzi is a museum that focuses on archaeological, geological and paleontological related objects. The museum covers part of a Pleistocene deposit of fluvial origin. The deposit extended over an area of ​​about 1200 m² and consisted of sand and gravel, mostly volcanic. The dep

The National Museum of Musical Instruments (Museo nazionale degli strumenti musicali) is a museum in Rome. Its collection is based on the collection of musical instruments from the Jesuit Athanasius Kircher (1602-1680), who was also an organ expert. The museum's collection includes nearly 3,000 piec

The Historical Museum of the Grenadiers of Sardinia (Museo Dei Granatieri Di Sardegna) is a museum in Rome that is divided into 15 rooms containing weapons of various origins, both Italian and foreign, as well as photographic material relating to the Great War, the reasons for the awarding of gold m

The Museo delle Antichità Etrusche e Italiche is a museum in Rome that reconstructs the ancient Italic populations through casts, models and graphics. The museum is divided into two sections. The first being the Gorga collection with Etruscan and Italic ceramics dating back to a period between the A

In "Welcome To Rome" you will be immersed in the history of Rome and you will live an exciting and engaging experience. In fact, visiting Welcome To Rome means making a real journey through time and space. Walls and ceilings will come alive around you while on the ground a large model of the city

The Catacombs of Domitilla, located in Rome, Italy, are an underground Christian cemetery. The catacombs bear the name of the Domitilla family, who were responsible for their initial excavation. This historical site offers a unique glimpse into the past, providing a fascinating exploration for visitors.

The Museo Delle Cere in Rome is a Wax Museum in Rome where visitors can take a journey through history, encounter movie and music celebrities and world leaders, all past and present. The Wax Museum features several themed rooms, includiing: Ancient Rome, Actors, Music, Painters, History and Popes.

The Museo Criminologico is the Criminology Museum of Rome. The museum is housed in the Palazzo del Gonfalone which is a former juvenile prison. The objects of the collection are presented in a chronological way to contextualize the instruments on display.

The Museo della Mente is the Museum of the Mind in Rome in Italy. The museum aims to bring people into an experiential density where the condition of visitors slowly turns into an unconscious interpretation of the stages of madness, of its postures, of its obsessive behavior through interactive stat

The Museo Internazionale Del Presepio (the International typological museum of the "Angelo Stefanucci" nativity scene) is a museum in Rome located in the basement of the church of saints Quirico and Giulitta. The museum holds and exhibits a collection of nativity scenes from all over the world, crea

The Museo Numismatico Della Zecca is the Museum of the Italian Mint of the l'Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (the State Printing and Mint Institute). The museum holds a collection of about 20,000 coins, medals and wax pieces, not only Italian, but also foreign divided into papal medals (191

The Museo Parigino is a museum in Rome that was founded by Cesare Nissirio, president of the Athena Parthenos Association, with the aim of collecting materials related to Parisian culture between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. The museum is in a way related to the

In the Planetario e Museo Astronomico in Rome, you can learn more about the universe, galaxies and stars. The museum also organizes shows in its planetarium. The Planetarium and Astronomical Museum is a museum and educational complex located at the Museum of Roman Civilization. The planetarium consi