MUSEUMS AND MUSEOLOGY. – The term “museum” (m.) denotes a collection of works of art or objects from a particular period and historical setting, or scientific relics, while the second term, which is of modern coinage, refers to that special activity devoted to the study of the principles for establishing a good museum. The word “museum” derives from the practice, in Hellenistic Alexandria, of arranging works of art and relics in rooms dedicated to the Muses. Yet the origins of museums can also be traced to the custom of reserving special chambers in temples and sanctuaries to house the numerous, often artistically valuable, offerings made to the deities; these chambers were called “treasuries.”
A true museum intended also for public admiration was established by Attalus I at Pergamum, renowned for the artworks collected from the lands he had conquered.
During the Middle Ages, while cathedrals and monasteries preserved ex-votos and gifts from the faithful, there were no true museums open to the public. With the Renaissance, the cultural and aesthetic fervor of 15th-century Florence led to the transformation of private collections, once enjoyed only by their owners, into the first public museums, where young artists were admitted to study classical art firsthand. In this sense, the first museum in Europe was the Medicean Garden, where painters and sculptors freely came to draw from classical sculptures. In 1581, B. Buontalenti built for Francesco de’ Medici a large building in Florence to house collections of classical and contemporary art, which became the nucleus of the city’s galleries.
Especially in Italy, between the 15th and 16th centuries, the fashion for art collections flourished: the courts of Mantua, Modena, Milan, and Urbino were among the first to set the example. In France, under Francis I, the celebrated “Gallery” at Fontainebleau, where many Italian artists worked, already took on the aspect of a true museum. Later, Louis XIV, in his new design for the Louvre entrusted to Bernini, envisaged a grand gallery of statues, and under French influence, during the 18th century in England, private individuals and princes began assembling important collections that would later form the core of today’s public holdings.
At the heart of museum history stands the Vatican with its museums, unparalleled in the world, formed over time but especially owing to the grand vision of Pius VI, who initiated the first construction of what became known as the Pio-Clementine Museum. The Vatican Museums represent the supreme example of a magnificent arrangement of works, particularly Greek and Roman sculpture, in a neoclassical style.
The origins of modern museums largely lie in the acquisition of ancient private collections by the state, while in countries lacking a humanistic tradition, such as the United States, they were founded through the efforts of major cultural institutions or by governments themselves.
In the second half of the 19th century, the largest buildings dedicated to museums were constructed; one of the most famous was the State Museum of Berlin. More recently, with advances in urban planning and architecture, museums have been rationally designed to enhance the display and study of their holdings.
The Brera Gallery in Milan (reorganized in 1950), the Museum of Sculpture in Pisa, the Museum of the Floridiana in Naples, and the Gallery of the Banco di Napoli in the same city are among many examples of museums where modern measures have been adopted. Before the last world war, which caused severe damage even to Europe’s greatest museums (creating new and pressing problems), an “Office International des Musées” was established under the Intellectual Cooperation section of the League of Nations. Through congresses and publications, it greatly advanced all research related to museums. – See plate CV.