Agostino Pepoli Regional Museum, Trapani, Italy

The Museo regionale Agostino Pepoli is an art, archaeology and local history museum in Trapani. Established in 1906-1908 as the civic museum by count Agostino Pepoli and initially based on the private collection of count Sieri Pepoli and Neapolitan paintings donated by general Giovanbattista Fardella, it is based in a former 14th century Carmelite monastery next to the Basilica-santuario di Maria Santissima Annunziata. In 1921 it acquired count Francesco Hernandez di Erice's collection of cribs, ceramics and archaeological objects.

The museum houses a large collection of paintings, cribs, sculpture and decorative arts, including works by Antonello Gagini and in coral and silver. The paintings include works by Titian (Saint Francis Receiving the Stigmata) and Giacomo Balla (a portrait of Nunzio Nasi), a 15th-century Valencian Madonna and Child with Angels, a 1380 Pietà by Roberto d'Oderisio and a St Andrew by the Flemish artist Geronimo Gerardi. It also includes the 'Tesoro della Madonna', product of several donations to the Madonna di Trapani. The collection includes archaeological remains from the province (in 2009 Edipuglia published a catalogue of the Museum's archaeological collections) and historical relics of the Risorgimento era from Trapani, including a Bourbon-era guillotine and the ensign of the Lombardo, which brought Garibaldi and 'The Thousand' to Sicily.

References:

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Museums in Italy

User Reviews

Cindy Johnson (4 years ago)
Great activity for a rainy day!

Antonio Fiorino (4 years ago)
Really good Museum. Go on the first Sunday of the month to visit It for free.

Dulcinea Del Toboso (4 years ago)
A stunning museum in such a beautiful environment, the ex-convent of the Carmelites, placed side by side to the Santuario dell'Annunziata (Sanctuary of our Lady of Annunciation) known also as Madonna di Trapani. The rich patrimonium of the museum is originated from 3 private collections (Fardella, Pepoli and Hernandez') . There are very important manufactures of the Malophoros shrine in Selinunte and other referring to the Phoenician culture coming from the escavation of Mothya, Birgi and Lilibeo. Incredible amphora with its lid and gymn scenes painted dated back to VI Century A. C. This is "black figures" whereas among those with red paintings the most relevant is the Crater decorated with a design of a Dionisiac dance. Important archeological finds coming from First Punic War are also present. The museum preserves also hundreds of pieces that testimony one of the most important activities of Trapani, the art of coral, know abd esteemed all over the world. Definitely a must stop museum.

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Monte d"Accoddi is a Neolithic archaeological site in northern Sardinia, located in the territory of Sassari. The site consists of a massive raised stone platform thought to have been an altar. It was constructed by the Ozieri culture or earlier, with the oldest parts dated to around 4,000–3,650 BC.

The site was discovered in 1954 in a field owned by the Segni family. No chambers or entrances to the mound have been found, leading to the presumption it was an altar, a temple or a step pyramid. It may have also served an observational function, as its square plan is coordinated with the cardinal points of the compass.

The initial Ozieri structure was abandoned or destroyed around 3000 BC, with traces of fire found in the archeological evidence. Around 2800 BC the remains of the original structure were completely covered with a layered mixture of earth and stone, and large blocks of limestone were then applied to establish a second platform, truncated by a step pyramid (36 m × 29 m, about 10 m in height), accessible by means of a second ramp, 42 m long, built over the older one. This second temple resembles contemporary Mesopotamian ziggurats, and is attributed to the Abealzu-Filigosa culture.

Archeological excavations from the chalcolithic Abealzu-Filigosa layers indicate the Monte d"Accoddi was used for animal sacrifice, with the remains of sheep, cattle, and swine recovered in near equal proportions. It is among the earliest known sacrificial sites in Western Europe.

The site appears to have been abandoned again around 1800 BC, at the onset of the Nuragic age.

The monument was partially reconstructed during the 1980s. It is open to the public and accessible by the old route of SS131 highway, near the hamlet of Ottava. It is 14,9 km from Sassari and 45 km from Alghero. There is no public transportation to the site. The opening times vary throughout the year.

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