Crowdfunding launched to save Giuseppe Verdi's villa from collapse

A crowdfunding campaign has been launched to restore Villa Verdi, the historic home of composer Giuseppe Verdi in Sant'Agata di Villanova sull'Arda, Italy. The villa, purchased by Verdi in 1848 and inhabited from 1851, is now a museum threatened by subsidence due to the clay-rich soil, causing the front of the building to sink. Urgent restoration is needed, and the forced closure during the pandemic lockdown worsened the museum's finances, risking permanent closure. Verdi himself designed the villa's expansion, and it houses his personal effects, including a Fritz fortepiano used to compose Il Trovatore and La Traviata, an Erard piano used from 1871, gloves worn for conducting the Messa da Requiem, and a hat and scarf depicted in Giovanni Boldini's 1886 portrait. The property includes a six-hectare park with plants selected by Verdi, now part of the Po Grande UNESCO Mab Biosphere Reserve. The campaign is hosted on the Italian platform Innamorati della Cultura, with donations starting from 10 euros. Angiolo Carrara Verdi, an heir, stated they turned to the platform before making drastic decisions. Donations are accepted until September.