Calenda Proposes Evicting Rome City Hall from Campidoglio to Create a Unified Ancient Rome Museum
Carlo Calenda, a candidate for mayor of Rome, has put forth a proposal to move all city offices from Campidoglio hill to establish a grand museum focused on ancient Rome. His comprehensive 12-page initiative aims to consolidate exhibits from multiple institutions, such as Palazzo Massimo and the Capitoline Museums, into the 'Museo Unico per la Roma Antica,' which would span 49,000 square meters. Calenda points out that the current scattered collections result in low attendance, noting that municipal museums draw only 5% of visitors, in contrast to the Vatican Museums' 21%. He recommends a foundation, jointly run by the city and the Ministry of Culture, to manage the museum, which would also host light displays in the Roman Fora. While some critics doubt his qualifications, others view this as a vital change.
Key facts
- Carlo Calenda proposes relocating Rome city offices from Campidoglio to create a unified museum of ancient Rome.
- The museum would merge collections from Palazzo Massimo, Palazzo Altemps, Crypta Balbi, Museo di Roma – Palazzo Braschi, Museo della Civiltà Romana, Centrale Montemartini, and Capitoline Museums.
- Current exhibition space of Capitoline Museums is 14,000 sqm; needed space for all collections is 34,730 sqm, totaling about 49,000 sqm.
- Municipal museums receive only 5% of Rome's museum visitors, compared to 21% for Vatican Museums and 73% for state-run museums.
- Calenda proposes a foundation jointly managed by the city and the Ministry of Culture.
- Additional spaces include Villa Rivaldi and Via dei Cerchi complex.
- The plan includes light shows in the Roman Fora.
- A pre-existing project called 'Campidoglio 2' for a new city hall in Ostiense district is mentioned.
Entities
Artists
- Andrea Carandini
- Vittorio Sgarbi
- Francesco Bonami
- Demetrio Paparoni
Institutions
- Capitoline Museums
- Palazzo Massimo
- Palazzo Altemps
- Crypta Balbi
- Museo di Roma – Palazzo Braschi
- Museo della Civiltà Romana
- Centrale Montemartini
- Vatican Museums
- Louvre
- Ministry of Culture
- Comune di Roma
- Collezione della Centrale Montemartini
- Musei Capitolini
- Campidoglio
- Corriere della Sera
- Il Giornale
- Il Foglio
- Domani
- Artribune
- Pinacoteca Capitolina
- Palazzo Barberini
- Circo Massimo
- Fondo edifici di culto
- Partito Democratico
- Rinascimento
Locations
- Rome
- Italy
- Campidoglio
- Villa Rivaldi
- Via dei Cerchi
- Ostiense
- Paris
- London
- Stockholm
- Amsterdam
- Circo Massimo
- Palazzo Massimo
- Palazzo Altemps
- Crypta Balbi
- Museo di Roma – Palazzo Braschi
- Museo della Civiltà Romana
- Centrale Montemartini
- Musei Capitolini
- Palazzo Barberini
- Villa Albani
- Basilica di San Pietro
- Santa Maria del Popolo
- Santa Maria dell'Anima
- San Luigi dei Francesi
- Palazzo Farnese
- Lazio