Musei Civici di Villa Colloredo Mels

The Civic Museums of Villa Colloredo Mels in Recanati combine a picture gallery, archaeological collections, historical objects and material related to Giacomo Leopardi.

Why it matters

The museum brings together several aspects of Recanati's cultural history in a former noble residence. Paintings by Lorenzo Lotto, the poet's funeral mask and objects documenting the town's civic past connect art, literature and archaeology.

What to notice

The picture gallery includes four works by Lorenzo Lotto, among them the Polyptych of San Domenico and the Annunciation. Other works include paintings by Olivuccio di Ciccarello, Vincenzo Pagani and Giambattista Piazzetta. The Leopardi section contains the poet's funeral mask and family portraits. Historical displays include the city's 1405 statutes, coins and sixteenth-century robes of the priors.

Context and history

Villa Colloredo Mels retains medieval fabric and was reshaped as a palazzo from the late sixteenth century onward. The Colloredo-Mels family acquired the property in the eighteenth century. In 1998 the municipality installed the civic collections in the building, bringing together the picture gallery, Leopardi memorabilia and archaeological finds. The archaeology section traces local communities from the late Neolithic through the Iron Age and the Picene and Roman periods.