The original core of the Achille Bertarelli Print Collection in Milan was formed by the initial donation of the collector Achille Bertarelli (1925).
However, its current size is due not only to direct acquisitions but also to the generosity of a large number of donors who have contributed to making this collection unique in the Italian and international cultural landscape.
The Achille Bertarelli Print Collection – now consisting of about 1,000,000 prints and a specialized library holding 23,000 volumes and over 600 periodical titles – boasts numerous specimens of the highest quality: from the oldest 15th-century woodcuts to plates by contemporary masters.
The main body of the institute consists of iconographic testimonies of the most varied manifestations of human life.
There are representations of historical and news events, portraits, costumes, popular figures, views of cities and monuments, maps, toy soldiers and games, in addition to countless “small prints”: ex libris, visiting cards, advertisements, menu lists, tickets, calendars, invitations, postcards and all those “minor” documents that are important to preserve because they provide valuable support for historical and cultural research.
