MUSEO MISSIONARIO CINESE E DI STORIA NATURALE

In a notebook dated 1930, Egidio P. Santoro, a missionary in China for about 50, listed objects (weapons, tapestries, amulets, statuettes, vases, etc.). Then shipped to Italy with this titration: "things and stuff from the museum." 

These findings were settled in 1953 by Fr Egidio De Tommaso on the mezzanine of the sixteenth century Palazzo Della Monica. In 1981, Thomas P. Leopizzi, head of the Missions, had the happy idea of setting up the missionary center in the existing premises of the Museum by transferring the material of Father Santoro and other artifacts from Formosa, where he worked for many years a group of Franciscan friars of Lecce. 

At the same time added some collections (beetles, moths, shells, ...) edited by P. De Tommaso. This is the beginning of the Chinese Missionary Museum and Natural History Museum. 

Twenty years have seen changes and additions in both local (expansion) or collections (increase of the existing ones and other additions scratch: minerals, fossils and herbarium). 

Today the museum, arranged in 12 rooms, including the section of Chinese Culture and the Natural History, in turn, divided as follows: marine fauna (crustaceans, fish, coral, corals, echinoderms, sponges, shells), terrestrial fauna (beetles, moths , reptiles, mammals, birds), minerals, fossils, herbarium. 

 

Detail Info visits: 

Open only for guided tours: 

mart. Thurs. sat. 9:30 to 11:00; October / April 16:00 to 18:00; May / September 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. 

The visits of School Groups must be agreed in advance