Capitoline Museums

The Capitoline Museums () are a group of art and archaeological museums in Piazza del Campidoglio, on top of the Capitoline Hill in Rome, Italy. The historic seats of the museums are Palazzo dei Conservatori and Palazzo Nuovo, facing on the central trapezoidal piazza in a plan conceived by Michelangelo in 1536 and executed over a period of more than 400 years. The Capitoline Museums, known for its exhibitions of works related to the history of ancient Rome and the Capitoline Hill, which was the political and religious center of the city, express the greatness of Roman civilization and its precious legacy that helped influence modern Western society.

The museums display works from the ancient world (Greek, Roman, Etruscan and Egyptian), the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. They house masterpieces such as the ''Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius'', the ''Capitoline Wolf'', the ''Dying Gaul'', the Bust of ''Medusa'' by Bernini, ancient sculptures, paintings (with works by artists such as Caravaggio, Titian, Pietro da Cortona, Guercino, Velázquez, Rubens), coins, jewelry and archaeological finds.

The Capitoline Museum was established in 1471 under the observation of Pope Sixtus IV, who donated to the city a collection of important bronzes from the Lateran (including the ''Capitoline Wolf'', the ''Boy with Thorn'', the ''Bronze colossus of Constantine'' and the ''Camillus''), which he had placed in the courtyard of the Palazzo dei Conservatori and in Piazza del Campidoglio.

In 1734 Pope Clement XII purchased the prestigious collection of antiquities of Cardinal Alessandro Albani, which was about to be purchased by English collectors, and opened the museum to the public, making it the oldest public museum in the world, the first place in the world that allowed ordinary people to enjoy art. Provided by Wikipedia