Museums
The museum is in Cagliari in the premises of the Archconfraternity, next to the modern Church of Santi Giorgio e Caterina, built after WWII at the foot of Monte Urpinu, the city's principal park.
The main displays are objects and furnishings from the church of the same name that once stood in the via Manno, in the historic centre of the city, and which was destroyed by an allied air raid on 13 May 1943.
The museum has paintings, statues, silver objects and liturgical vestments from the old church, as well as documents belonging to the Archconfraternity's archive. The artefacts on display were purchased by the Archconfraternity over the centuries from Ligurian art markets. They mostly date to the 17th century, the Archconfraternity's 'golden century', when the old church was built, and are evidence of the flourishing Genoan community, present in Cagliari since the 11th century, which was engaged in trade and cultural exchanges with the whole of mainland Italy.
The exhibition is arranged in several rooms, on the ground and first floors, without following any precise chronological order or style pattern. The painters, sculptors and silversmiths whom the fraternity commissioned to make the sacred objects came from several places in Italy: Naples, Rome, Cagliari and Turin, although the greatest contribution came from Genoan artists. One of the finest works is a wooden processional sculpture group depicting the martyrdom of Santa Caterina, made by Giuseppe Anfosso in 1792 (a splendid 18th-century processional cross is housed in the adjoining church).
Among the paintings, the most noteworthy is a "Christ and Mary offer the Rosary to Dominican Saints', painted between 1620-30. There are also many sacred objects in silver. Pride of place goes to the beautiful 17th-century processional cross bearing the mark of the corporation of Genoan goldsmiths and silversmiths, and a 18th-century monstrance from Turin, with rayed design and decorated with precious stones. The section of fabrics is very rich and with exquisite items, dating between the 17th and the mid 20th centuries. It includes chasubles, stoles, dalmatics, copes, surplices, rochets and chalice veils, made in a variety of fabrics and colours. On the upper floor are texts, acts and archive documents of the confraternity, from the late 16th century (the Papal bull granting the title of Archconfraternity was issued in 1591) to our days.
A unique piece of the exhibition is a fine small parchment book bearing the rules that the Genoan Archconfraternity gave itself in 1596, the first ever by a Sardinian archconfraternity and the only ones on the island written in the Italian language.
Address: via Gemelli, 2 - 09129 Cagliari Phone +39 070 497855 Managing Agency: Arciconfraternita dei Genovesi
The museum is in Cagliari in the premises of the Archconfraternity, next to the modern Church of Santi Giorgio e Caterina, built after WWII at the foot of Monte Urpinu, the city's principal park.
The main displays are objects and furnishings from the church of the same name that once stood in the via Manno, in the historic centre of the city, and which was destroyed by an allied air raid on 13 May 1943.
The museum has paintings, statues, silver objects and liturgical vestments from the old church, as well as documents belonging to the Archconfraternity's archive. The artefacts on display were purchased by the Archconfraternity over the centuries from Ligurian art markets. They mostly date to the 17th century, the Archconfraternity's 'golden century', when the old church was built, and are evidence of the flourishing Genoan community, present in Cagliari since the 11th century, which was engaged in trade and cultural exchanges with the whole of mainland Italy.
The exhibition is arranged in several rooms, on the ground and first floors, without following any precise chronological order or style pattern. The painters, sculptors and silversmiths whom the fraternity commissioned to make the sacred objects came from several places in Italy: Naples, Rome, Cagliari and Turin, although the greatest contribution came from Genoan artists. One of the finest works is a wooden processional sculpture group depicting the martyrdom of Santa Caterina, made by Giuseppe Anfosso in 1792 (a splendid 18th-century processional cross is housed in the adjoining church).
Among the paintings, the most noteworthy is a "Christ and Mary offer the Rosary to Dominican Saints', painted between 1620-30. There are also many sacred objects in silver. Pride of place goes to the beautiful 17th-century processional cross bearing the mark of the corporation of Genoan goldsmiths and silversmiths, and a 18th-century monstrance from Turin, with rayed design and decorated with precious stones. The section of fabrics is very rich and with exquisite items, dating between the 17th and the mid 20th centuries. It includes chasubles, stoles, dalmatics, copes, surplices, rochets and chalice veils, made in a variety of fabrics and colours. On the upper floor are texts, acts and archive documents of the confraternity, from the late 16th century (the Papal bull granting the title of Archconfraternity was issued in 1591) to our days.
A unique piece of the exhibition is a fine small parchment book bearing the rules that the Genoan Archconfraternity gave itself in 1596, the first ever by a Sardinian archconfraternity and the only ones on the island written in the Italian language.
Address: via Gemelli, 2 - 09129 Cagliari Phone +39 070 497855 Managing Agency: Arciconfraternita dei Genovesi
