Villa Farnesina: 6 works to see, in the villa Raphael painted for a banker
The works to see at Villa Farnesina: Raphael’s Triumph of Galatea, the Polyphemus by Sebastiano del Piombo, the Hall of Perspectives and the 1527 graffiti.
Musei 13 min
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Villa Giulia Etruscan Museum: 8 works to see, and the tomb that arrived in 2026
The works to see at the Villa Giulia Etruscan Museum: the Sarcophagus of the Spouses, the Apollo of Veii, the Pyrgi gold tablets and the François Tomb.
Musei 14 min
Ara Pacis: 6 reliefs to read, and a monument rebuilt twice
How to read the Ara Pacis of Augustus: the procession of the imperial family, Aeneas, the Lupercal, the Tellus, the acanthus scrolls and the altar inside.
Monumenti 13 min
Palazzo Merulana: 6 works to see from the Cerasi collection, in a building back from nothing
The works to see at Palazzo Merulana: the two boat trips by Donghi and Capogrossi, De Chirico’s Mysterious Baths and the Roman School of the Cerasi collection.
Musei 12 min
Museo di Roma at Palazzo Braschi: 7 works to see, and piazza Navona without the fountain
What to see at the Museo di Roma in Palazzo Braschi: the grand staircase, the mosaics of old St Peter’s, the Chigi carriage and piazza Navona in 1634.
Musei 13 min
MAXXI: 6 things to see, starting with Zaha Hadid’s building
What to see at the MAXXI in Rome: Zaha Hadid’s building, the piazza, the roof, the artist-curated display of the collection and the Nervi and Rossi archives.
Musei 12 min
National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome: 8 artworks to see, from Canova to Pollock
The works to see at the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome: Canova’s Hercules and Lichas, Klimt’s Three Ages, both Van Goghs, Monet, Duchamp and Pollock.
Musei 14 min
Centrale Montemartini: 7 artworks to see among the engines of Rome’s first power station
What to see at the Centrale Montemartini: the Apollo Sosianus pediment, the Muse Polyhymnia, the hunting mosaic and the train of Pius IX, among diesel engines.
Musei 13 min
Castel Sant’Angelo: 6 spaces to see, from Hadrian’s ramp to the Passetto
What to see at Castel Sant’Angelo: Hadrian’s helical ramp, the Castellan’s apartment, the armoury, the terrace and the Passetto di Borgo.
Musei 13 min
Trajan’s Markets: 7 artworks from the Museum of the Imperial Fora
The artworks of the Museum of the Imperial Fora at Trajan’s Markets: the bull-slaying cupids, the clipeus with Jupiter’s head and the amphora collection.
Musei 12 min
The Museum of Rescued Art in the Octagonal Hall: the artworks coming home
The Museum of Rescued Art in Rome displays, in the Octagonal Hall of the Baths of Diocletian, works recovered from illicit trafficking, on rotation.
Musei 9 min
Baths of Diocletian: 4 spaces to see, from the cloister attributed to Michelangelo to the Hall of Gold
What to see at the Baths of Diocletian in Rome: the cloister attributed to Michelangelo, the inscription and sculpture halls, and the Hall of Gold.
Musei 12 min
Palazzo Altemps: 6 artworks to see, from the Ludovisi Gaul to the Ludovisi Juno
The artworks to see at Palazzo Altemps: the Ludovisi Gaul, the Ludovisi Great Sarcophagus, the Ares restored by Bernini, the Juno and the Egyptian collection.
Musei 14 min
Palazzo Massimo alle Terme: 8 artworks to see, from the Boxer to Livia’s frescoes
The artworks to see at Palazzo Massimo alle Terme: the Boxer at Rest, Livia’s painted garden, the Lancellotti Discobolus and the Grottarossa mummy.
Musei 14 min
Pontormo’s Deposition at Santa Felicita: Mannerism inside a chapel
Pontormo’s Deposition in the Capponi Chapel at Santa Felicita: why the title is misleading, and what remains of Brunelleschi’s chapel.
Monumenti Rinascimento 10 min
Orsanmichele: the granary that became a church, and the fourteen guild statues
Orsanmichele in Florence: why the statues outside are copies, where the originals are, the Orcagna tabernacle, hours, tickets and the floor that can close.
Musei Rinascimento 11 min
The Battle of San Romano: the three panels split between Florence, London and Paris
The Battle of San Romano by Paolo Uccello: which of the three panels is at the Uffizi, where the other two are, and how to read the lances in perspective.
Musei Rinascimento 11 min
The Madre in Naples: twelve rooms commissioned from artists, inside a former pawnshop
The Madre in Naples, a contemporary art museum in Palazzo Donnaregina: the site specific rooms, the collection and the exhibitions, with hours and prices.
Musei 11 min
San Miniato al Monte: the finest church in Florence is free and closes at midday
San Miniato al Monte in Florence: white and green Romanesque marble, the apse mosaic and Gregorian vespers at 18:30, with hours and how to get there.
Monumenti 10 min
San Lorenzo: the façade nobody ever finished and the sacristy that changed everything
The basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence: Brunelleschi’s Old Sacristy, the bare façade and when the Laurentian Library actually opens, with hours and tickets.
Monumenti 11 min
Spaccanapoli: Gesù Nuovo, San Domenico Maggiore and the Donatello almost nobody looks for
The three churches of Spaccanapoli in Naples: Gesù Nuovo, the Aragonese Tombs at San Domenico Maggiore and Donatello’s tomb at Sant’Angelo a Nilo.
Monumenti 12 min
Titian’s Venus of Urbino: what that painting really is
The Venus of Urbino at the Uffizi: not a goddess but a bride, the objects that prove it, the Medici dowry, the loans, current hours and tickets.
Musei Rinascimento 10 min
Leonardo’s Annunciation and Verrocchio’s Baptism: the master and the pupil in the same room
Leonardo’s Annunciation and Verrocchio’s Baptism of Christ hang in the same Uffizi room: how to read them, who painted what, hours and tickets.
Musei Rinascimento 11 min
Florence Baptistery: the doors you photograph are copies, and the originals are two hundred metres away
The Florence Baptistery and the Opera del Duomo Museum: Ghiberti’s doors, where the originals are, the dome mosaics, with hours and the three passes.
Monumenti 11 min
The Martyrdom of Saint Ursula: the last Caravaggio, credited to another painter for two centuries
The Martyrdom of Saint Ursula at Gallerie d’Italia in Naples: the last Caravaggio, the 1980 letter that reattributed it, the new room, hours and tickets.
Musei 11 min
Brancacci Chapel: the point at which painting learned to cast a shadow
The Brancacci Chapel in Florence: Masaccio’s Expulsion, the fig leaves the restoration removed and the Sala della Colonna, with hours and booking.
Monumenti 10 min
San Gregorio Armeno: how a shepherd figure is made, and the door almost nobody opens
San Gregorio Armeno in Naples: how a nativity shepherd figure is made, the church frescoed by Luca Giordano and the cloister, with hours, price and timing.
Monumenti 11 min
The Doni Tondo: Michelangelo’s only finished painting, and the frame nobody looks at
The Doni Tondo at the Uffizi: which room it’s really in, why it’s Michelangelo’s only finished painting, and how to read the spiral and the frame.
Musei Rinascimento 10 min
The Bourbon Tunnel: the escape route a king had dug, and that never reached the palace
The Bourbon Tunnel in Naples: the 1853 military passage, the wartime shelter and the seized cars, with hours, prices and which route to pick.
Monumenti 11 min
Museo di San Marco: a friary where every cell has its own fresco
The Museo di San Marco in Florence: Fra Angelico’s Annunciation, the friars’ frescoed cells and Savonarola’s rooms, with hours and tickets.
Musei 10 min
Palazzo Vecchio: the hall a friar built and a Medici painted over
Palazzo Vecchio in Florence: the Hall of the Five Hundred, Francesco I’s Studiolo, the Arnolfo Tower and the Thursday trap, with hours and tickets.
Monumenti 11 min
The art stations of Naples: Toledo, Università and Materdei, and the ticket you actually need
The art stations of the Naples metro: what to see at Toledo, Università and Materdei, and which ticket you need to visit all three.
Monumenti 11 min
Castel Nuovo: the marble arch wedged between two towers, and the hall where the barons’ conspiracy ended
Castel Nuovo, the Maschio Angioino of Naples: Alfonso’s arch, the Hall of the Barons, the Giotto of the Palatine Chapel and the necropolis under the floor.
Monumenti 10 min
The Seven Works of Mercy: the Caravaggio that was declared unsellable in 1613
Caravaggio’s Seven Works of Mercy at the Pio Monte della Misericordia in Naples: how to read the painting, hours, tickets and the short Sunday window.
Musei 11 min
Santa Chiara in Naples: the majolica cloister is not medieval, and the basilica you walk into dates from 1953
The Santa Chiara complex in Naples: Vaccaro’s majolica cloister, the basilica burned in 1943 and the Roman baths, with hours, tickets and how you get in.
Monumenti 11 min
The Royal Palace of Naples: a palace built for a king who never set foot in it
The Royal Palace of Naples: the Staircase of Honour, the Historical Apartment, the Court Theatre and the eight kings on the façade, with hours and closing day.
Monumenti 10 min