The first version of the palace was preserved thanks to valuable documentation left by Peter Paul Rubens, who included the engraving of the facade in the volume I palazzi di Genova published in Antwerp in 1622.
Thanks to this, the original connection between the two wings of the palace with an open loggia is documented, which was closed in the mid-17th century and, on the second floor, replaced by a terrace on which the gallery of mirrors was built in 1734. The original fresco decoration with fake architectures can also be seen, from which some fragments have recently been recovered, suggesting continuity in design between the outer facades and the fresco decoration visible in the rooms of the first noble floor. The museum was created with the art collection, furnishings, ceramics, silverware, books, and engravings that the marquises Paolo and Franco Spinola donated to the Italian State in 1958 along with the centuries-old family palace of which this constituted the heritage. The condition of the donation was to maintain the appearance of a residence that characterized it, except for the last two floors.
Here, aware that the war damage had erased the historic appearance and therefore such a condition had no grounds, they suggested the establishment of a different museum, the then newly founded National Gallery of Liguria.
As intended, this part of the palace was opened in 1993 to present to the public the core of the works that today enrich the museum’s collection, formed by State acquisitions aimed at complementing the Spinola donation.
