The Convent of the Observance, built by the Observant Friars Minor in 1403, the first seat of the Franciscan reform in Bologna, is annexed to the church of S. Paolo in Monte, rebuilt in neoclassical style by V. Vannini in 1828. The complex houses the Museum of Chinese Missionary Art, opened to the public in 1964 and reorganized in 1996, which displays ethnographic materials collected by the Franciscan Minor Friars from the Emilia province working in Africa and the Far East, especially China, and the Museum of the Observance. The latter, inaugurated in 2003, preserves precious examples of sacred art that belonged to the Minor Friars. Important paintings by C. Bononi, E. Sirani, G. Cavedoni, G. and U. Gandolfi, A. Crespi, and F. Pedrini are kept. Well documented is the Chinese culture between the late 19th and early 20th centuries: alongside artifacts of high historical and artistic value, including a series of bronze figurines with Buddhist themes or rare examples of small wooden sculptures from Hunan, the collection includes everyday objects, garments, embroidered silks, tapestries, paintings, and items owned by the missionary friars. It is complemented by artifacts from Oceania and Central Africa, from which come musical instruments and ivories. A section of the Museum of the Observance is dedicated to objects of convent life and archaeological finds uncovered during excavation work near the convent. Among the artistic heritage, notable are the panel of the “Crucifixion” by Orazio di Jacopo, the terracotta sculpture of “Saint Onuphrius Supported by Angels” by Gaetano Gandolfi, some liturgical goldsmith works, and the miniatures by Bolognese Nicolò di Giacomo dating back to the 14th century.
Information on the Museum of Chinese Missionary Art and Museum of the Observance
Via dell’Osservanza, 88,
40121 Bologna (Bologna)
051580597
frati.osservanza@libero.it
Source: MIBACT
