Description
Trieste's Museum of Oriental Art brings Asia into an 18th-century townhouse on the edge of the Old Town, a few steps from Piazza Unità d'Italia. Gandhara sculptures, Chinese porcelain, Japanese armour and prints over four floors.
The visit starts with the section on Trieste and the East, which tells the port city's ties with Asia in the 18th and 19th centuries through travel souvenirs and accounts. On the same floor is the Gandhara section, with its sculptures.
The second floor is devoted to China, with clothing, textiles, porcelain and ritual objects. The top two floors are for Japan: lacquerware, enamels, masks and musical instruments from popular theatre, weapons and armour, and a remarkable collection of prints.
The museum opened on 8 March 2001 in Palazzetto Leo, on Via San Sebastiano, donated to the city by the family that owned it.
The visit starts with the section on Trieste and the East, which tells the port city's ties with Asia in the 18th and 19th centuries through travel souvenirs and accounts. On the same floor is the Gandhara section, with its sculptures.
The second floor is devoted to China, with clothing, textiles, porcelain and ritual objects. The top two floors are for Japan: lacquerware, enamels, masks and musical instruments from popular theatre, weapons and armour, and a remarkable collection of prints.
The museum opened on 8 March 2001 in Palazzetto Leo, on Via San Sebastiano, donated to the city by the family that owned it.