Centrale Montemartini is a hidden gem, and one of our favorite museums in Rome. Housed in Rome’s first public power plant — circa 1912 — it makes for a funky and fun juxtaposition of the power plant’s enormous machinery and an assortment of ancient statuary. Its intentional anachronisms make it an engaging wonder. 

 

This museum works for me on many levels. It creatively reuses an early power plant, which is itself an interesting piece of Rome’s modern history that should be preserved and displayed. The artworks come from the Capitoline Museums collection, and are “minor” masterpieces that would have otherwise likely been stored somewhere in a warehouse.  Here they can be seen and enjoyed by scholars and the public.

 

 

The experience is more than a spacious and light-filed building. The contrast between the gigantic, darkly colored, old metallic machinery that once generated power and the much smaller, nearly white, ancient marble statuary of people who once held power is both unexpected and interesting. You can see from the photo at the top of this post the enormity of some of the machinery — the control panels, boilers, and generators.

 

 

The photos below feature the sculptures, but that’s not because the power generating machinery is to be ignored.  Indeed, you can learn a lot about it as you walk among the sculpture.

 

You can get up close and personal with the many incredible sarcophagi and statues.

 

 

There are all these wonderful faces from ancient times.

 

 

 

 

 

The main hall is incredible, with the huge power plant equipment, high ceilings, and lots of natural light.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One room allows you to climb up to a platform and look upon a large hunting scene mosaic.

Centrale Montemartini is located in Rome’s Ostiense quarter. There were no more than ten other people in the entire museum when we visited in November. We were also fortunate that there was a terrific temporary exhibit on ancient mosaics. More on that in a later post.