Rome is a top destination for most Italian travelers, and with good reason. Traveling to Rome allows visitors to experience the local traditions as well as enjoy the ancient artifacts that are located throughout all areas of the city. Easily the most popular destination for most tourists – once the trip through the ruins is complete – is the wide range of Roman museums.
The National Roman Museum
With several locations, you’ll need to block plenty of time to properly explore the National Roman Museum. As you move through the museum, you’ll find coins, statues and any number of artifacts from the imperial periods of the Roman Empire on through the medieval days. The National Roman Museum may be the most broad-based museum in the city, with a wide array of materials on display.
Galleria Borghese
Stroll the grounds of this fabulous museum before you wander inside to see other treasures. Throughout the grounds, you’ll see amazing works of natural art and inside the museum you’ll find additional treasures including a tremendous collection of classical sculpture including Bernini’s Apollo and Daphne and the famous statue of David. Also in the museum are paintings by Raphael, Caravaggio and other Renaissance artists. The location of this museum on the grounds of the Villa Borghese Park is especially charming, and the perfect way to enjoy the afternoon.
Capitoline Museums
Wander through the ruins of ancient Rome’s Capitol Hill and you’ll easily find the Capitoline museums. These museums include any number of architectural finds that have been unearthed over the decades of field work in Roman ruins. Among the most interesting aspects of the museum, visitors are able to see portions of a giant statue of Constantine, portions of another statue of Marcus Aurelius as well as the famous twins, Romulus and Remus – the fabled founders of Rome.
While also the home of paintings and smaller treasures including ancient coins, epigraphs and paintings, it is the large treasures and the sheer volume of materials housed in the Capitoline Museums that make this museum notable.
The National Gallery of Modern Art
If the antiquities are getting old, perhaps it’s time to take in a bit more of the modern fare. The National Gallery of Modern Art is filled with both Italian and global artists from the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. Inside you’ll find works from artists like Van Gogh, Renoir as well as Alberto Burri and Luigi Pirandello.
