One of the Greatest Collections in Europe

The Capodimonte Museum boasts over 47,000 works of art, spanning the Middle Ages to the 21st Century. Nestled above the city overlooking the Bay of Naples in a magnificent palace of 150,000 square feet, the collection features masterpieces by Masaccio, Raphael, Titian, Pieter Brueghel the Elder, Parmigianino, the Carracci, Caravaggio, Ribera, Luca Giordano, Artemisia Gentileschi and many more.

Capodimonte is the legacy of four great European dynasties: the Italian aristocratic Farnese family, the Bourbon Kings of Naples and Spain, the family of Napoleon Bonaparte, and the Italian Savoy monarchy. King Charles of Bourbon began construction of the palace in 1738 to display the exceptional Renaissance and Baroque collection given to him by his mother, Elisabetta Farnese. Charles and his heirs vastly expanded the collection, especially in the decorative arts. Both Napoleon’s brother Joseph Bonaparte and brother-in-law Joachim Murat took the palace as their primary residence. When Italy unified in 1861 the palace passed to the Savoy Kings of Italy, who used it to project their power in southern Italy. Following World War II, an ambitious project transformed Capodimonte into a public museum in 1957.

Watch AFC Fellow Caroline Paganussi (2021-23) give an introduction to the Capodimonte Museum and Royal Park

Visiting the Museum

Getting to the Museum and Royal Park from the historic center of Naples is easy.

Visitors can take the City Sightseeing Line A bus which stops inside the Park by the Porta Piccola entrance.
or
Take bus C63 from Piazza Dante for the Porta Grande entrance at Via Capodimonte 24
or
Take bus 168 or 178 from Piazza Dante or take the air conditioned 3M bus from the Archeological Museum for the Porta Piccola entrance at Via Miano 2

Click here on the Capodimonte website for the latest information on taxis and driving to Capodimonte.

Opening Hours

Please click here for the the latest information on the Museum’s website for opening hours and to purchase tickets.

You can also purchase tickets and get tours for the Museum and Royal Park on your phone by downloading the Capodimonte app from the App Store or Google Play

Collection Highlights

In addition to works highlighted here and on the Museum website, treasures from Capodimonte are also available to view on the Google Arts & Culture platform and in the Catalogo generale dei Beni Culturali.