The Archaeological collections include important finds from the period of the Veneti and from the pre-Roman and Roman ages; it also has an Egyptian section, whose expansion was largely due to the material brought back made by the Paduan explorer Giovan Battista Belzoni (1778-1823). There is in-depth coverage of the Roman Via Annia and of the city during Roman times. Complete with tomb furnishings, portraits, statues and everyday objects, this makes a fundamental contribution to our understanding of local history.
The rich picture gallery has works that date from as early as the thirteenth century, and continues up to the great masters of eighteenth-century Italian painting. The exhibits include a Crucifix by Giotto, which was painted in the very first years of the fourteenth century and originally hung over the altar in the Scrovegni Chapel.
Dating from a short time after there is an important group of panel paintings by Guariento, including the Angels from the Chapel in the Carraresi Palace. Among the many masterpieces of sixteenth-century painting are a Madonna and Child by Boccaccio Boccacini and various paintings by Veronese; Jacopo Tintoretto’s Supper in the House of Simon and The Crucifixion are also works of great interest. As for the eighteenth century, particular mention should be made of the works by Giambattista Tiepolo: St. Joseph with the Young Christ; The Madonna; Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane. On the lowered ground level of the Museum there are seven multi-media stations that provide visitors with an introduction to the Scrovegni Chapel frescos and supply information on the historical and artistic context within which Giotto worked.
