Museo Civico Bari

The Civic Museum of Bari was founded in 1913 to celebrate the 100^th year anniversary of the creation of the “Murat District”. On this occasion the Civic Administration organized and set up the “Historical Exhibition of the 19^th century”, which was also promoted by some important scholars of Bari.

This Exhibition was so successful that the City Administration decided to establish the first “Historical Museum” in the Margherita Theatre‘s rooms.

In 1926 the museum became a charitable trust, which kept its location in the theatre and in the course of time was enriched by interesting material like the archive and the paintings of the Tanzi family.

During the Second World War the museum was seized by the Anglo-American troops and became a recreation centre for soldiers. The museum re-opened some years later in different locations of Bari in Largo Urbano II, near the Basilica of San Nicola.

In 1977 the museum was moved into Strada Sagges 13 and the collection trasferred to the present premises. The old palace which houses the museum is located on the edge of the early medieval core of the city, in an area full of archaeological finds. The building consists of a three-storey tower, which connects to the Petroni arch, thus representing a fortified complex, which is typical of medieval palace houses.

Subsequently other structures were added to it, like the southern building, which dates back to the late 18^th century.

One of the most valuable goods in the museum collection is the cradle of the Marquis of Montrone, a precious carved wooden artefact, decorated with silver leaf apllications dating back the the second half of the  18^th century.

The first printed book in Bari, by th French typographer Gilberto Nehou, goes back, instead, to the 15^th of October 1535. The author under the pseudonym Parthenopeo Suavio is Nicola Antonio Carmignano, a gentleman from Napoli at the service of Isabella d’Aragona and her daughter Bona Sforza.