Pinacoteca Caracciolo: A Franciscan Cultural Stronghold in Lecce

The Pinacoteca d'arte francescana "Roberto Caracciolo" in Lecce is a museum and library complex adjacent to the Church of Sant'Antonio a Fulgenzio, surrounded by 1970s buildings. Directed by Brother Paolo Quaranta, the institution embodies Franciscan principles of sharing and community. The museum was initiated in the 1960s by Brother Egidio De Tommaso and inaugurated in 1964, housing paintings from provincial convents. Its collection focuses on Baroque and Counter-Reformation art, predominantly from the Neapolitan school, featuring artists such as Gianserio Strafella, Oronzo Tiso, Serafino Elmo, Jusepe de Ribera, Luca Giordano, and Francesco Fracanzano. A monographic section is dedicated to Father Raffaello Pantaloni, a Tuscan-born Franciscan painter who also created the mural cycle in the adjacent church. The highlight is a collection by outsider artist Ezechiele Leandro, who produced a cycle of paintings on the Fioretti of Saint Francis for the Franciscans in Lequile, now housed in the Pinacoteca along with sculptures and documents revealing the genesis of his Santuario della Pazienza in San Cesario di Lecce. The museum is named after Roberto Caracciolo, a 15th-century Franciscan preacher from Lecce. Art historian Elvino Politi serves as head of visitor services. The Pinacoteca is considered one of Europe's most stimulating sites for Franciscan iconographic research and a key stop on an artistic itinerary in Salento.