The Central State Archives Museum traces the history of Italy through precious documents

On March 14, 2023, in the presence of Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano, theCentral State Archives will inaugurate The Casket of Memory, an exhibition tracing the history of Italy through the precious testimonies kept by the Institute. The unprecedented narrative unfolds within a new and permanent museum space located on the ground floor of the building’s main body, in the heart of the monumental complex designed for the Armed Forces exhibition as part of the 1942 World’s Fair, home to the Archives since the 1950s.

The exhibition is developed through textual panels, display cases and multimedia apparatus articulated along five thematic areas. The protagonist of the story is one of the three original texts of the Constitution of the Italian Republic preserved by the Archives. The work L’Italia dell’art. 5, created by Emilio Isgrò specifically for the Archives drawing inspiration from the principles of the Constitutional Charter, welcomes visitors to the center of the museum.

Together with the complete collection of the originals of Laws and Decrees from the Unification of Italy to the present day and the funds of the National Council and the Constituent Assembly, it is possible to see a selection of documents among the most significant for the history of the Nation: Garibaldi’s telegram to General La Marmora (“I obey”), the list of the Thousand of Marsala, the plans for government works for the new Capital, the documentation produced by the Presidency of the Council of Ministers during World War I, the flags of the workers’ associations involved in the so-called biennio rosso, and sources relating to the Fascist regime from the March on Rome until its fall.

A prominent place is also devoted to documentary material on the racial laws, World War II, the preservation and protection of cultural property during wartime events, the Liberation struggle, and the massacres of the years 1969-1980, recently declassified following the directives of Council Presidents Prodi, Renzi and Draghi. The museum also pays tribute to Italian creativity and originality by dedicating a space to Made in Italy: patents and models that trace the social, economic and cultural process of post-unification Italy.

“Since its establishment, the Central State Archives has been a place where scholars and researchers work to investigate the nation’s history. The papers often preserve collective memory. Today it opens to a wider public with an initiative that has the merit of enhancing documents of exceptional value, capable of conveying the deep sense of our national identity. In the ’Memory Chest’ everyone will be able to find the traces of the path that led to the birth and development of Italy, allowing us to continue with greater awareness in our being an Italian nation,” says Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano.

The new environment also serves as a repository and houses the personal archives of Prime Ministers and eminent personalities of Italian politics. The museum itinerary that develops within it is aimed at enhancing the heritage and promoting knowledge of the country’s history; it is aimed at a heterogeneous public and at educational institutions that can take advantage of specific historical-educational tours.

“The project was created to promote heritage education and knowledge of the history of the country and its democratic institutions,” explains Director General and Superintendent of the Central State Archives, Andrea De Pasquale, “following the experiences of major national and international archival institutions, including the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) of the United States and the Archives Nationales of France. The valuable exhibition allows to retrace the history of the country, from the Unification to the present day, from a political, economic and social point of view through documents, relics, bibliographic, photographic and audiovisual materials from the Institute’s funds and is especially aimed at the new generations. ”The creation of the museum itinerary,“ the Superintendent continues, ”is part of a larger project of the Institute aimed at rationalizing the space of the headquarters’ repositories, financed by the Ministry of Culture as part of the Strategic Plan ’Major Cultural Heritage Projects’ 2021-2023.

The exhibition will be open to the public starting March 22, 2023. It can be visited free of charge on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, from 10 a.m. to noon and 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.). Guided tours, with reservations required at acs.visiteguidate@cultura.gov.it

The Central State Archives Museum traces the history of Italy through precious documents

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