Galleria Nazionale di Palazzo Spinola

The Galleria Nazionale di Palazzo Spinola occupies a noble family palace at Piazza di Pellicceria 1, in the heart of Genoa's Centro Storico in Liguria, Italy. The Spinola family, one of the great banking and merchant dynasties of the Republic of Genoa, donated the palace to the Italian state, and it now operates as a national gallery under the same heritage authority as Palazzo Reale.

What makes the museum distinctive is that it combines two experiences in one building. The upper floors preserve the rooms of a Genoese aristocratic home, with period furniture, frescoed ceilings, mirrors and decorative arts arranged much as they were when the family lived here. The picture gallery above holds a collection that includes Antonello da Messina's Ecce Homo, one of the best-known works in Genoa, as well as portraits by Anthony van Dyck and other artists linked to the Genoese elite. The roof terrace offers a view over the dense medieval rooftops of the old town.

A visit takes about an hour. Admission is about EUR 8 on a combined ticket with Palazzo Reale, free under 18, and EUR 2 for EU citizens aged 18-25. The hours differ from Palazzo Reale: the gallery is generally open Tuesday to Saturday and on Sunday afternoons, so the opening times on palazzorealegenova.cultura.gov.it should be checked first. Information is available at +39 010 2710236.

The palace sits in a lively quarter near San Giorgio metro station, about five minutes on foot, and it is an easy stop between the Porto Antico and the Strada Nuova. Crowds are light most of the year. Mid-morning on weekdays is the calmest time, and the smaller rooms are best enjoyed without tour groups. Visitors interested in Genoese social history will find the domestic interiors as rewarding as the painting collection.