Museo della ceramica di Savona, Ceramic art museum in Palazzo del Monte di Pietà, Savona, Italy
The Museo della Ceramica di Savona is housed in a palazzo and displays over 1,000 ceramic works spanning centuries, from Renaissance pieces to contemporary creations. The collection is arranged across multiple floors, offering a thorough view of how ceramic art changed and evolved through time.
The Palazzo del Monte di Pietà was founded in 1479 by Pope Sixtus IV, a Savona native, as one of Italy's earliest charitable pawn institutions. The building grew from medieval terraced houses; in 1594 four adjacent houses were bought and a slate staircase was added. The left facade belongs to the first Monte, the right part was added about a century later, and the current facade dates from 1864, designed by engineer Giovanni Tissoni.
The collection demonstrates how Ligurian potters developed their craft over time, mixing old methods with contemporary art forms. You can see how local traditions shaped what these makers created and how their work influenced the region's identity.
The museum occupies four levels of the Palazzo del Monte di Pietà, entered by the slate staircase built in 1594, now the main entrance. The visit ends with the Quadrisfera, an immersive installation by physicist Paco Lanciano on the history of Ligurian ceramics. A library on ceramics, art history and museology is available to visitors and scholars.
The museum features a Quadrisfera, a multi-screen cinema system that shows films about the history of local ceramic making. This unusual display format gives visitors an immersive way to learn about the city's pottery tradition.
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