Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica di Palazzo Corsini, Art museum in Palazzo Corsini, Trastevere district, Rome, Italy.
The Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica di Palazzo Corsini occupies the piano nobile of Palazzo Corsini alla Lungara, in Trastevere. Its rooms open off a long gallery with a pale marble floor inlaid with dark bands forming rectangles, circles and an eight-pointed star, beneath a barrel vault painted with grey and gold scrollwork. Gilt-framed paintings hang above carved wooden console tables with marble tops, and a white bust sits in a niche above the far doorway.
The collection began in the 17th century with Cardinal Neri Maria Corsini's paintings, joined in the early 18th century by works from other Corsini branches and gifts. In 1883 the palace and its holdings were sold to the Italian state, creating the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica, part of which is now at Palazzo Barberini.
The Corsini family's collection began with Cardinal Neri Maria Corsini in the 17th century, grew through bequests and donations from other branches of the family in the first half of the 18th century, and was sold to the State in 1883. The gallery keeps the Corsini name and displays works from the 14th to the 18th century, with Italian Baroque painting well represented.
The gallery occupies the piano nobile of Palazzo Corsini alla Lungara, on Via della Lungara in Trastevere, a short walk from the Ponte Sisto and the Janiculum. Rooms follow one another in a sequence, so follow the numbered route to avoid backtracking. The palace also houses the Accademia dei Lincei, and its courtyard garden adjoins the Botanical Garden of Rome.
The building shares its grounds with Rome's Botanical Gardens, so visitors can combine art viewing with a walk through rare plants. This unexpected proximity to green space offers a nice break from spending time indoors looking at paintings.
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