Palazzo Venezia (Museo Nazionale) historical timeline

A Venetian pope's palace that became, four and a half centuries later, Italy's museum of the applied arts — partly out of other museums, partly out of suppressed monasteries.

Chronology

1. 1464–1471 — the palace is the grandiose papal dwelling of the Venetian Paul II Barbo, a great enthusiast of collecting and the ideal initiator of the building's museum and artistic destiny.
2. 17th century — the Museo del Collegio Romano is founded by the encyclopedic Jesuit Athanasius Kircher, whose collections will later feed this museum.
3. 1921 — the Museo Nazionale del Palazzo di Venezia is instituted, its collections forming from a first nucleus of sculptures and works from Castel Sant'Angelo, the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica and the Museo del Collegio Romano.
4. 1924–1926 — various objects are added: whole ceramic sets, ecclesiastical furnishings, silverware, goldwork and sacred vestments, confiscated from the religious orders suppressed at the end of the previous century and coming from various monastic communities in the region.
5. After the Second World War — following substantial bequests and numerous public and private donations, the museum little by little defines its character as a great Museum of Applied Arts.
6. Currently — the Sale Storiche are temporarily closed to the public for restoration, while the Giardino Grande has free entry every day.

• Official website
• Wikipedia