Stibbert Museum

The Stibbert Museum, conceived by Frederick Stibbert (1838-1906), is a rare example of a 19th-century museum: an extraordinary collection of arms, armour and works of art is displayed in a series of rooms whose evocative layout was designed to evoke the atmosphere of the period and the places of origin of the various objects.

The collections include weapons, armour, costumes, objects of furniture and applied art, tapestries and paintings from the 16th to the 19th century, displayed in 60 rooms. The Sala della Cavalcata (the riding hall) is remarkable, where life-size European and Oriental knights are arrayed; the Japanese section includes, in addition to arms and armour, bronzes, costumes, lacquerware: it is one of the most important in the world outside Japan.

The park surrounding the villa, dotted with pavilions, statues, fake ruins and even a small Egyptian temple, reflects Stibbert's adherence to the romantic and eclectic taste typical of his time.