The Museum of Rome in Trastevere is located in the former monastery of Sant’Egidio, where the Discalced Carmelites lived until the capture of Rome. Once restored, in 1976 the building became home to the Museum of Folklore and Roman Poets, which preserved materials related to Roman popular traditions from the Museum of Rome and the Municipal Cabinet of Prints.
In 2000, it was reopened to the public under the name Museum of Rome in Trastevere. The new renovation allows for a layout better suited to current museographic needs, particularly accommodating temporary exhibitions mainly of photography, as well as shows, conferences, and concerts.
The museum’s permanent collection displays the key aspects of Roman popular life from the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, filtered through the tastes and beliefs of the artists and folklorists who depicted it. The most prominent themes in the collection include costumes, folk dances, secular and religious festivals, and trades.
Specifically, the collection includes a selection of paintings, prints, drawings, and watercolors, among which is a selection from the famous “Roma sparita” series by Ettore Roesler Franz (Rome 1845 – 1907): an eighteenth-century Roman nativity scene; six realistic environment depictions, better known as The Roman Scenes, reproducing life-sized aspects of nineteenth-century Roman popular life.
The museum’s collection also includes materials belonging to the great poet Trilussa (Rome 1871 – 1950), donated to the city of Rome after his death and partly exhibited in a video installation called the “Trilussa Room”.
