5 More Museums In Italy That You Can Visit Virtually Right Now

As we all try and remain home as much as possible to keep ourselves and our loved ones and others safe and to try and help our struggling healthcare systems, many are in search of different activities that one can do from the comfort and safety of their own homes. We have previously written about some incredible museums in Italy that can be visited virtually online including the Uffizi, the Vatican Museums, the Capitoline Museums, Venerada Biblioteca Ambrosiana, and the Museo del Novecento but there are many more excellent examples to keep you entertained as you stay at home and look forward to a time when travel to Italy is possible once more. Here are just five more museums in Italy that you can visit virtually right now!

1. La Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Rome

The Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, or National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, in Rome is dedicated to art from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and boasts the largest collection of paintings and sculptures from this period in Italy, with some 1100 pieces on display at any given time in the museum. While many think of art far more ancient when Rome first comes to mind and then of the Renaissance and later gems, both artistic and architectural, of the likes of Michelangelo and Bernini, this museum presents slightly more recent and no less important works of art. In fact, the museum is home to works by such iconic and important names from the history of Italian art as Antonio Canova, Lucio Fontana, and Amedeo Modigliani, among others, and international names such as Braque, Calder, Cézanne, Degas, Duchamp, Giacometti, Kandinsky, Mondrian, Monet, Jackson Pollock, Rodin, and Van Gogh. Through the Google Arts and Culture initiative, you can view these collections and curated exhibitions online, as well as explore the beautiful grounds and building (designed by prominent Italian architect Cesare Bazzani, executed between 1911 and 1915, and expanded by Bazzani in 1934 and architects Diener & Diener in 2000) through virtual tours, all of which can be experienced here.

2. Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte, Naples

Described by CN Traveler at the, “Most Underrated Museum in Italy,” the Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte, is located in the Palace of Capodimonte, a grand Bourbon palazzo in Naples, Campania, and truly is a rather special gem that is well-worth a visit for laymen and art-lovers alike. A reflection of when Naples was the centre of a kingdom and a rival to Paris in terms of culture and sophistication, the museum is home to an astounding collection of Neapolitan painting and decorative art with additional works from other Italian schools of painting, as well as some important ancient Roman sculptures. Located in a public park, the museum was originally intended as a hunting lodge but then became a grand palace that was filled with art over time before becoming purely a public art gallery in 1950. As such, it is located a distance from the centre of Naples and was under-visited for years. The introduction of a shuttle bus in the last few years has now made it much more accessible and being part of the Google Arts and Culture program makes it accessible even now, given the current global situation. Come view it here online and see works by the likes of Simone Martini, Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio, Masaccio, Lorenzo Lotto, Giovanni Bellini, Giorgio Vasari, El Greco, Jacob Philipp Hackert, and the best collection of works by the Neapolitan School including large holdings of Jusepe de Ribera, Luca Giordano, and the Neapolitan Caravaggisti. You can also go on virtual tours of the museum itself, the wider palace, and the incredible grounds and park that surround.

3. Doge's Palace, Venice

The Doge's Palace, or Palazzo Ducale, is another former stately home, tourist attraction, and museum that is now open to the public and possible to visit virtually online. Located in the famous St Mark's Square, it is one of the defining landmarks of
Venice and a masterpiece of ornate Gothic architecture. The ducal seat was first moved into the area in the 9th century, though no trace of that building exists today. Instead, the current structure dates to 1340 when plans were made to expand the building in order to to accommodate the greatly increased number of Great Council members, though there have been alterations and periods of rebuilding since, such as after fires in the 15th and 16th centuries. A ducal home for much of its existence, the building was also used to house various political and governmental bodies throughout the centuries, until the 19th century. It was then that all public offices were moved elsewhere, bar the State Office for the Protection of Historical Monuments, which continues to exist on the palace's loggia floor. As of 1923, the state has entrusted the management to the Venetian municipality to be run as a museum and it has been part of the Venetian museums network since 1996. If you click here, you can explore the art collection of the building and the interior of this stunning and iconic Venetian institution for yourself.

4. Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, Naples

Returning again to Naples, the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli (or National Museum of Archaeology), is yet another institution that displays and underlines the incredible artistic, historic, and cultural heritage of this part of the world. The museum hosts a collection of particularly rich and important ancient Roman remains with many key holdings from the nearby sites of Pompeii, Stabiae, and Herculaneum, as well as works and artefacts from Greek and Renaissance times. Housed in the Piazza Museo, in a 16th century building that was formerly a cavalry barracks and then the seat of the University of Naples, the museum was founded in 1777 and then established at this site in the nineteenth century. Particular highlights include: the collection of classical marble sculptures, much of it donated with the Farnese collection, with key examples like the Farnese Hercules and the Farnese Atlas; a collection of Roman bronzes from the Villa of the Papyri; the mosaic collection, including the Alexander Mosaic, which tells the story of Alexander the Great; the collection of Ancient Egyption artefacts; and the Secret Cabinet, which contains erotic items mostly derived from the excavation of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Explore the museum's interior, exterior, the reproduction of Pompeii, the Egyptian collection, the sculptural collection, and more, all virtually here.

5. Galleria civica d'arte moderna e contemporanea di Torino, Turin

The Galleria civica d'arte moderna e contemporanea di Torino, or Turin Civic Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, was founded between 1891 and 1895. After moving around the city for a while, it eventually found its permanent home in a purpose-built building by Carlo Bassi and Goffredo Boschetti, which was opened to the public in 1959. Displaying a collection of 19th and 20th century art, it boasts an extraordinary collection of some 47,000 paintings, sculptures, art installations and pieces of video art with works by the likes of Antonio Canova, Giovanni Fattori, Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo, Antonio Mancini, Giacomo Balla, Paul Klee, Amedeo Modigliani, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Giorgio De Chirico, Lucio Fontana, Nino Franchina, and Domenico Valinotti. Explore the interior and exterior of this gem here.

So, even though we may yet be unable to visit Italy in person, there are plenty of tools that allow us to explore this beautiful country and its incredible cultural heritage virtually.