Naples Archaeological Museum: History
The Naples Archaeological Museum was built in 1585 by order of the Spanish viceroy, Don Pedro Giron, and designed by architect Giovanni Vincenzo Casale. Between 1610 and 1615, the structure was remodeled by architect Giulio Cesare Fontana to house the Studi (the ancient University). The original plan—two central floors standing above single-story side wings—remained incomplete, with only the west wing and the central section finished.
The façade of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples, lavishly decorated, features a sequence of windows and niches, interrupted only by the main entrance and two side doors. The windows, with ornate frames, are topped with marble vases and medallions displaying busts, while the niches contain ancient statues with modern restorations. The cornice is crowned with a marble balustrade, adorned with vases and pinnacles. The building’s central body is similarly embellished with statues on both sides of the pediment, vases, and obelisks flanking a small arched structure housing the clock bell. The Neapolitan Athenaeum remained here for over 150 years until moving to the Real Convitto del Salvatore in 1777.
In the late 18th century, architects Ferdinando Fuga and later Pompeo Schiantarelli expanded the old Palazzo degli Studi to create a universal museum, following the encyclopedic cultural model popular at the time: “to house the Royal Museum of Portici, the Capodimonte Gallery, the Great Public Library, the schools of Fine Arts (Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture), and the Hall for the Study of the Nude.” During these years, most of the building’s sculptural decorations were removed as an additional floor was added, giving the palace the commanding look still seen today.
Naples Archaeological Museum and Schools of Fine Arts
The Fine Arts school laboratories were housed in the eastern wing’s first-floor rooms, clustered around the impressive Hall of the Sundial, named after the solar clock originally installed there when the space served as an astronomical observatory. The hall, decorated by Pietro Bardellino with a commemorative inscription and an allegorical scene dedicated to Ferdinand IV and his wife Maria Carolina as patrons of the arts and sciences, also features eighteen historical paintings by Giovan Battista Draghi. It was later transformed into a library. Between 1821 and 1825, architect Pietro Bianchi completed restoration work and expanded the building’s northeast corner. He also designed the placement of the statue of Ferdinand I of Bourbon as Minerva, crafted by Antonio Canova, in a specially designed niche on the Museum’s grand staircase. The first arrangement of the Royal Bourbon Museum, managed by Michele Arditi in 1807, was completed in 1830 according to contemporary standards—by type and material class—with further pieces added through gifts, purchases, and finds from excavations in the Kingdom of Naples.
The Naples Archaeological Museum after Italian Unification
After Italy’s unification in 1860, the Royal Bourbon Museum became state property with its new name: the “National Museum.” Between 1863 and 1875, it was enriched with the outstanding Santangelo Collection and completely reorganized by Giuseppe Fiorelli based on typology. Ettore Pais continued with further organization between 1901 and 1904, and with the transfer of the Library to the Royal Palace of Naples in 1925 and the Art Gallery to the current Capodimonte Museum in 1957, only the vast antiquities collections remained. The museum thus developed its modern identity as an Archaeological Museum. Source: MIBACT
The museum building also houses the Superintendency for Archaeological Heritage of Naples and Pompeii.
Information about the National Archaeological Museum of Naples
Opening Hours
The Naples Archaeological Museum is open daily except Tuesdays, from 9:00 AM to 7:30 PM. It is closed on 1 January, 1 May, and 25 December.
Entrance Ticket Prices
Full price: €6.50;
Reduced: €3.50;
Free entry for visitors over 65 or under 18 years old.
Discounts for school groups and larger parties.
Where is the Naples Archaeological Museum?
Piazza Museo Nazionale, 19
80135 Naples
Tel: +39.081.4422149 (Museum Information Desk)
+39.081.4422111 (Switchboard)
E-mail: man-na@beniculturali.it
