MAEC - Museo dell'Accademia Etrusca e della Città di Cortona

The MAEC combines Cortona’s Etruscan Academy and city museum in Palazzo Casali. Its collections include an Etruscan bronze chandelier, the bronze inscription known as the tabula Cortonensis, Egyptian antiquities and works by Gino Severini.

Why it matters

The museum grew from the Accademia Etrusca, founded by Cortonese intellectuals in 1727. In 1728, Grand Duke Gian Gastone de’ Medici granted the academy part of Palazzo Casali. The museum was reorganized as the MAEC in 2005, bringing the academy’s collections together with the history of Cortona.

What to notice

The Etruscan bronze chandelier is among the museum’s distinctive objects. Other highlights include the tabula Cortonensis, the academy’s porcelain tempietto donated by Carlo Ginori, Egyptian antiquities collected by Bishop Guido Corbelli, paintings attributed to Luca Signorelli, and works by Futurist artist Gino Severini.

Context and history

Abbot Onofrio Baldelli’s 1727 donation of books and antiquities helped establish the academy’s museum. Palazzo Casali had earlier been the residence of Cortona’s ruling Casali family and later housed Florentine captains. Today the academy, museum and library continue to share the building.