Ravenna will have a museum center on the 19th century, with a museum on the Risorgimento and one on Byron

The new Museum Complex of Palazzo Guiccioli, an initiative promoted by the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Ravenna, opens in Ravenna on October 26. This ancient mansion, completely restored, will house the Byron Museum, the Museum of the Risorgimento and the new home of the Museum of Dolls - Graziella Gardini Pasini Collection. The choice of the opening date is not random, as it recalls October 26, 1860, the day of the Teano Meeting between Garibaldi and Victor Emmanuel II, a crucial moment in the Italian Risorgimento.

The news of the opening of the new Museum Complex was announced by the President of the Ravenna Foundation, Ernesto Giuseppe Alfieri. The restoration of Palazzo Guiccioli, a building that covers an area of 2,220 square meters, represents for the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Ravenna an investment of not only economic but also cultural significance. This project has allowed the recovery of a building that has spanned the centuries, reaching its peak in the 18th and 19th centuries, when it became one of the city’s most prestigious residences. The residence, with its cosmopolitan vocation influenced by Byron’s long stay, became one of Ravenna’s most vibrant cultural centers.

In addition to the restoration, the palace has been functionalized as a museum complex to enhance a crucial period of local and national history. The entire monumental complex, which extends from the main street to the side street, is richly decorated with splendid frescoes adorning the rooms, ceilings and walls. As known, Palazzo Guiccioli will house the unique Byron Museum dedicated to the famous Romantic poet, representing a promise for Anglo-Saxon tourism, which has always been fascinated by the figure of Byron and second only to Shakespeare.

“With Palazzo Guiccioli and its museum complex,” says the President of Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Ravenna, Ernesto Giuseppe Alfieri, “the Foundation becomes an active player in the field of protection, preservation and enhancement of the cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible, that during the nineteenth century makes Ravenna a small center that connects the local homeland to the national one, as well as to the awakening of libertarian instances that cross Europe and the New World. Ravenna therefore as alma mater, the welcoming homeland of two great exiles of universal Literature, Dante and Byron, who found here, along with protection, the fruitful space for poetic activity.”

With respect to the progress of the restoration and set-up work, President Alfieri points out that “after a series of force majeure causes, which slowed down the chrono-program, we are now proceeding briskly. First, the pandemic that forced us to close the construction site for almost a year. Next, work was slowed down by anti-county procedures. Finally, as a result of Covid there was a significant increase in raw material costs, which led to a further slowdown in activities and a substantial revision of the contract. All of this has had no small impact on execution time and has resulted in an inevitable increase in costs. Now we can say that the many activities are up to speed and we can finally say that we are well on our way.” The part of the complex facing Via Cavour is completed, while that on Via Morigia is at a good level of progress. “Now,” President Alfieri continues, “hoping that there will be no other impediments, we are working to inaugurate the museums, and open them to the public, on the occasion of the anniversary of the meeting in Teano between Garibaldi and Victor Emmanuel II.”

The museum itinerary will be geared toward enhancing memory and intangible content, with a focus on the literary output of Lord George G. Byron during his voluntary exile in Ravenna. Between 1820 and 1821, in fact, Byron lived and resided in Palazzo Guiccioli, making this place an important focus of his life and work. The main floor of the palace will house the Museum of the Risorgimento, which not only displays a vast collection of memorabilia related to the city’s participation in the uprisings of 1820-21, but also includes a highly relevant section devoted to Giuseppe Garibaldi and the popular dissemination of his myth.

President Alfieri explains that “Stefania Craxi, president of Fondazione Bettino Craxi, has granted on deposit for 20 years, the Garibaldi collection that belonged to her father Bettino Craxi, a well-known devotee of the Hero. Also part of that collection are memorabilia from Florence, thanks to the availability of Cosimo Ceccuti, president of the Spadolini Nuova Antologia Foundation. In fact, it is well known how Bettino Craxi and Giovanni Spadolini, both great fans of the Hero of the Two Worlds, competed to acquire items that belonged to Garibaldi.”

The exhibition subtly highlights the different inclinations of the two political leaders: on the one hand, it highlights the memorabilia with their iconographic and even oleographic content, while on the other hand it focuses on the importance of the documentation that testifies to the crucial passages, the entrenchment of ideas and the effects on public consensus. The Museum of the Risorgimento in Ravenna stands out for presenting not only the gifts offered by numerous citizens of Ravenna in order to preserve objects from oblivion, but also for the extraordinary collection of documents concerning the soon-to-be-mythologized figure of Garibaldi, which is certainly of great interest to scholars and enthusiasts of Risorgimento history.

“The Museum of the Risorgimento,” President Alfieri continues, “also houses an important collection of Masonic medals from the Guerrini bequest and granted on deposit to the Foundation for 20 years. All pieces of great historical and artistic significance.”

Closely related to the nineteenth-century context, the third museum ready to be opened within the Palazzo Guiccioli complex is the Museum of Dolls - Graziella Gardini Pasini Collection, one of the most prestigious in Europe for the importance and quality of its pieces. This museum will be housed in the detached section of the second court, thus offering a fascinating foray into the world of 19th-century dolls and toys.

“We are certain,” concludes the president of Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Ravenna, “that this new cultural and museum center, dedicated to the 19th century, will be an important element of attraction for national and international tourism. Such an ambitious project would not have been possible without the joint will of Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Ravenna and the Municipality of Ravenna, with the additional, competent support of Biblioteca Classense and MAR-Museo d’Arte della città di Ravenna, the generous and far-sighted adherence to the project of Fondazione Bettino Craxi and Fondazione Spadolini Nuova Antologia, and the passionate participation of its creators: above all Aurea Progetti Ravenna for the recovery of the building and its functionalization, of the Ravenna Restoration Laboratory for the recovery of decorative cycles and floors together with the many connected to the Project Unit. Such an ambitious project would not have been possible without extensive team concertation. Many credits and many thanks to those whose generous dedication made this worksite possible.”

Photo: Byron’s small study in Palazzo Guiccioli

Ravenna will have a museum center on the 19th century, with a museum on the Risorgimento and one on Byron

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.