Stefano Cardu Siamese Art Civic Museum, Cagliari

It is located in the historic center of the city, inside the Cittadella dei Musei, which houses many other museum structures. Artistic pieces of different Asian origins and cultures are exhibited. Alongside religious-themed art objects, exquisitely crafted domestic use items, rare coins, and little-known weapons are displayed. The collection is characterized by the great variety of pieces and materials: silver, ivory, bronze, porcelain, wooden sculptures, paper material, coins. The majority of the objects are of Siamese origin, a characteristic that gives the Collection peculiarity and uniqueness. The existence of the collection is due to the figure of the collector from Cagliari Stefano Cardu, who donated part of his prestigious collection of art objects and oriental weapons to the city, recovered during his long stay in Asia, particularly in Siam, present-day Thailand. Among the exhibited objects, the Chinese porcelains from the “Ming” period and the early “Qing” emperors (from the 14th to the 17th century) stand out, expressing an exquisite manifestation of art and technique of the highest level. Furthermore, the weapons section, although not large, is still of uncommon interest: unique in Italy and among the few in the world, it presents a significant panorama especially of Siamese weapons, which form the most abundant and interesting group. Besides housing the largest collection of Siamese Art in Europe, it is the first Civic Museum of Sardinia and the only example of an Oriental Museum in the Region.