Napoleonic Museum: Historical Jewel in Rome

Although Napoleon Bonaparte never set foot in Rome, this small museum is a perfect spot to learn about his life and story, a sincere homage to the Napoleonic dynasty.

And its location could not be better. 

A mere block away from the National Roman Museum, across from the Piazza dei Tribunali, and only a few blocks away from the Ara Pacis and the Piazza Navona, the Napoleonic Museum is a jewel often neglected in the vast panorama of museums in Rome.

Small and intimate, the museum holds an impressive collection of memorabilia, fine art pieces and personal items belonging to the Bonaparte family through nearly two centuries. 

The collection was amassed though decades by Count Giuseppe Primoli (great-grandson of Joseph and Lucien Bonaparte), who moved to Rome after the fall of the Empire and remained devoted to his family his entire life. 

His collection includes family souvenirs, objects donated by Princess Mathilda and Empress Eugénie, as well as Napoleonic items bought from antique dealers or purchased in auction sales.

Set on the ground floor of the Palazzo Primoli, the small dimension of the museum allows for a quick visit, although those interested in history and art will probably want to spend hours checking its rich collection.

Furnished with period furniture, and arranged to look like a family home, the museum takes visitors to an intimate sojourn into the life and deeds of Napoleon Bonaparte and his extended family, in which every item is a veritable piece of history. 

Oil paintings, etchings, prints, watercolors, painted ceilings, sculptures, terracotas, busts and marbles compete for our attention along countless other personal artifacts, such as personal jewels and fans, precious bone china, miniature portraits, board games, the shoes worn by Paulina Bonaparte, Napoleon Bonaparte's swords, the robes of Napoleon III, among many others. 

Yet each one of these contributes to enrich this collection with a sense of domesticity not found in other museums.

The collections are displayed in more than a dozen rooms, each one designed to address a particular subject. 

Thus, for instance, there are rooms dedicated to Carlotta and Zenaïde Bonaparte, to the Prince Imperial, to the Popes Pius VI and VII, Paulina Bonaparte Borghese, Giuseppe and Carolina Bonaparte, Napoleon Bonaparte himself, etc. 

In addition to the descriptions adjacent to each piece, texts in Italian, English and French are available in every room for those visitors eager to learn more about the subjects displayed. 

An audioguide is also available. 

The visit to the museum can be complemented with a visit to the Count Primoli's House museum, adjacent to the Museo Napoleonico and located in the same building.

Although less imposing than the Villa Borghese or the Palazzo Barberini, the Napoleonic Museum is also more accessible o the visitor and provides them with a thorugh historical experience in a fraction of the time and space.

Whether you are interested in art, history, or merely the beauty of an era, the Napoleonic Museum in Rome is well worth a visit.

More Information

Venue: Museo Napoleonico - Napoleonic Museum

Location: Piazza di Ponte Umberto I, 1 - Rome

Hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 

Cost: € 7,50. Concessions: € 6,00. Free for residents of Rome. Free with MIC Card.

Link: https://www.museonapoleonico.it