Museo Rospigliosi

The Rospigliosi Museum in Pistoia occupies the noble floor of the palace associated with Pope Clement IX. Its rooms preserve the papal apartment prepared for him and a collection of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century paintings.

Why it matters

Giulio Rospigliosi, later Pope Clement IX, was born in the palace. The family's furnishings and paintings passed with the building to the Bishop's Curia, preserving a rare record of a Pistoian household and its papal connection.

What to notice

The apartment retains much of the furnishing prepared for Clement IX, including a bedroom with a red-damask canopy bed. The painting collection includes twenty-five works by Giacinto Gimignani, as well as works by Sebastiano Vini and Lorenzo Lippi. The palace chapel and decorated rooms complete the domestic setting.

Context and history

The Rospigliosi family acquired the palace on Pistoia's first circle of walls in the sixteenth century. Giulio Rospigliosi was elected pope in 1667 and took the name Clement IX. The apartment was arranged for his return to his hometown. The final family member, Clemente Rospigliosi, left the palace, furnishings and paintings to the Bishop's Curia. The museum is currently listed as temporarily closed by the cited official portal.