Convent of the Alcantarines

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In the centre of the new town, the small village, is the wide Piazza Archita with Villa Garibaldi at its centre. On the northern side of the villa is the complex of San Pasquale church and the Convent of the Alcantarines, which has been hosting the National Archaeological Museum of Taranto since 1887. Although it has been restored since January 2000, already from 2002 the mezzanine floor has hosted some temporary exhibitions that are not only archeologically interesting, but also historically and artistically interesting.

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Address:	Corso Umberto, 18 - 74100
Town:	Borgo
Municipality:	Taranto
Province:	Taranto
Phone:	(+39)0994532112

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A Brief History:

The Alcantarine friars in 1736 obtained the authorization to build a convent. In 1794, thanks to different donations, the complex was completed. The friars remained there until February 1861, the year in which religious orders were suppressed. Then the complex was converted into a district penitentiary. The Municipality gave the former Convent of Sant’ Antonio to the State as the seat for the prison, and in exchange it obtained the Alcantarine complex. However only in 1887 the estate became the National Archaeological Museum from an initiative by Luigi Viola, an archaeologist of the Ministry of the Public Education.

Not to be missed:

Absolutely not to be missed are the gold and silver jewels found in Taranto, displayed with the name Ori di Taranto (Golds of Taranto). The exhibition made these remains famous all around the world. The exhibition consists of gold fibula, tiaras, rings, coins and above all ornamental objects and women’s clothes.

Main Works:

Among the most prestigious and interesting remains are: an archaic Kore of Ionic type, a funeral stele of Attic type with a naked young man offering a pomegranate to the chthonian snake and a beautiful Aphrodite’s head from a Prassitele school dating back to the half of the 4th century B.C.

Style:

The convent was enlarged a few times. In 1903 the facade was made in Umberto I style, according to a project by Calderoni. The northern side was made in accordance with a project by Ceschi between 1935 and 1941. After 1949 the building, heavily damaged by the war bombings, was restored and restructured to welcome the public.

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The exhibition is divided into three sections: prehistoric, from Taranto and topographic. It follows a chronological order, from the prehistoric and protohistoric period, to the Greek period, the Roman, late-ancient and Early Middle Ages. After the first settlement, at the end of the 4th millennium B.C., it continues with the remains of the Greek polis, until the findings of the Roman age consisting of graves and houses in Taranto. Very relevant are the collections from Taranto, above all those coming from necropolis and funerary sets.

Sources: By the editorial staff
Updated on: 30/10/2008

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