Museo Regionale della Ceramica

The Museo Regionale della Ceramica of Caltagirone preserves more than 2,500 ceramic and terracotta objects from across Sicily, spanning prehistory to the early twentieth century. Its collection reflects the island's long traditions of pottery and decorative arts.

Why it matters

Founded in 1965, the museum was established to document the history of ceramic production in Sicily. Its holdings range from prehistoric objects to modern workshop pieces. One notable work is a fifth-century BC Attic krater depicting a potter at his wheel.

What to notice

The collection brings together works from successive periods and centres of production across Sicily. The Attic krater presents pottery-making as a subject in its own right, while local Caltagirone ceramics reflect the town's enduring connection with clay and fired decoration. The museum's 2025 reinstallation at Palazzo Libertini di San Marco presented a selection of about two hundred works from the wider collection.

Context and history

The museum opened in 1965 in the city's public gardens, with the late-eighteenth-century Teatrino serving as its entrance. A selection of the collection was presented at Palazzo Libertini di San Marco in 2025, adding a new setting to the museum’s history. These successive settings reflect the continuing work of preserving and presenting Caltagirone's ceramic heritage.