Civic Museum

Cuneo's civic museum is housed within the monumental complex of San Francesco, which is undoubtedly the most important medieval building in town. This neighbourhood was one of the oldest in the city and housed a church dedicated to the saint from Assisi as early as the end of the 13th century. A larger church with a cloister was built in the 14th century and then it was further enlarged in the following century. Noble families, guilds and the municipality itself had their altar inside this building and so took great care to decorate it and look after it. Many illustrious representatives of the town were buried here, and their tombstones line the floor of the church.

Not only religious ceremonies were held here, but also political agreements and public meetings. After Napoleon's suppression of the religious orders in 1802, this church was closed for worship and completely stripped of all its assets. After a series of events, the church passed into the hands of Cuneo’s municipality, which in the 1980s decided to set up a Civic Museum inside it. Today the church space is used for important exhibitions, concerts and cultural events.

Address
Via Santa Maria 10, Cuneo, Italy

Established
14th century