These artifacts were arranged in 1953 by Fr. Egidio De Tommaso in the mezzanine of the 16th-century Della Monica palace. In 1981, Fr. Tommaso Leopizzi, head of the Missions, had the fortunate idea to establish the missionary center in the current premises of the Museum by transferring the material of Father Santoro and other artifacts from Formosa where a group of Franciscan friars from Lecce had been working for years.
At the same time, some collections (beetles, lepidoptera, shells, …) curated by Fr. De Tommaso were added. This was the beginning of the Chinese Missionary and Natural History Museum. Twenty years of activity saw transformations and additions both in the premises (expansion) and in the collections (increasing existing ones and adding new ones: minerals, fossils, and the herbarium).
The Museum today, arranged in 12 rooms, includes the Chinese Culture section and the Natural History section, itself divided as follows: marine fauna (crustaceans, fish, madrepores, corals, echinoderms, sponges, shells), terrestrial fauna (beetles, lepidoptera, reptiles, mammals, birds), minerals, fossils, herbarium.
Visit details:
Open only for guided tours:
Tue. Thu. Sat. 9:30 – 11:00; Oct/Apr 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm; May/Sept 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
School group visits must be arranged in advance
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