Museo Paolo Cresci per la storia dell’emigrazione italiana
Museum in the Palazzo Ducale in Lucca on the history of Italian emigration, with letters, diaries, passports and photographs of emigrants.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The museum is dedicated to the Florentine scholar Paolo Cresci (1943–1997), who, out of a passion for photography, gathered over time a vast archive of documents, books and images on the history of emigration. After his death the Province of Lucca acquired the collection, and in 2002 it set up a foundation to create and run the museum, which is housed in the chapel of Santa Maria della Rotonda and in the adjoining rooms of the Palazzo Ducale.
The route follows the stages of the emigrant's journey from Italian unification onwards: departure, the journey and arrival, work, new homelands, remembrance and the new path. Letters, diaries, passports, photographs and objects of everyday life tell individual stories, while panels and data illustrate departures, returns and remittances. Historical films, sequences from recent films, interviews with the protagonists and interactive multimedia stations allow visitors to deepen their research.
The foundation also wishes to invite reflection on present-day Italy, no longer only a country of emigration but also of immigration and reception, promoting tolerance and dialogue between cultures.
Highlights
- Letters, diaries and passports of emigrants
- Six-stage route from departure to remembrance
- Archive photographs and films
- Interactive multimedia stations
- Period trunk and bas-reliefs by the figurinai (figurine vendors)
Permanent exhibition
- Percorso permanente sulla storia dell'emigrazione italiana – Documents, photographs, objects and films that follow the emigrant's stages from departure to arrival and work in the destination countries.
- Founded
- 2005
- Operated by
- Fondazione Paolo Cresci per la storia dell'emigrazione italiana
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
- Hands-on stations
The route includes interactive multimedia stations where visitors can carry out research.
Getting there & parking
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Amenities & dining
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
