Museo della Misericordia

The Museum of the Misericordia in Anghiari preserves the history of a confraternity that has served the town since 1348. Its collection of documents and medical equipment occupies a former castle chapel in the historic Badia building.

Why it matters

The museum traces the Misericordia's work in caring for the sick and poor across centuries. Rather than a princely collection, its objects document the practical service of a local charitable institution and the history of the town's hospital.

What to notice

The main hall was once the chapel of the castle that preceded the present borgo. Its wooden ceiling rests on two arches supported by three square pillars; the portal, arches and capitals are attributed to the workshop of Pietro di Bernardino di Subisso. Fresco fragments in adjoining rooms date to the early fifteenth century. The museum also displays medical equipment from the Ospedale della Misericordia, founded in 1870.

Context and history

The hall later housed the Compagnia del Corpus Domini, founded in 1506 and suppressed in 1785. Members of the Misericordia acquired the premises, which passed formally to the confraternity in 1865. The building was listed as a monument in 1903. The museum took shape after 1975 in the Badia, the confraternity's historic seat.