Carpi: Palaces, Museums and Balsamic Vinegar in the Historic Centre

Palazzo dei Pio and the Museums of Carpi

Palazzo dei Pio consists of various buildings dating from the Middle Ages to the 18th century. It originated as a fortified castle, was expanded over the centuries with rocche, towers and turrets, and was only transformed into a princely residence for Alberto III Pio at the beginning of the 16th century. The museums of Palazzo dei Pio are located in the former residence of the Pio family between Piazzale Re Astolfo and Piazza dei Martiri and convey the history of Carpi and its surrounding area.

The Museo del Palazzo occupies the piano nobile of the former residence of the Pio family. Among other things, it displays Renaissance works and a collection of woodcuts. The rooms preserve important fresco cycles created by Giovanni del Sega and Bernardino Loschi between the mid-15th century and the early years of the 16th century.

The Museo della Xilografia was founded in 1936 by Luigi Servolini to honour the importance of Ugo da Carpi, who is regarded as the inventor of the chiaroscuro woodcut technique at the beginning of the 16th century. The museum connects this printmaking tradition with Aldo Manuzio’s stay in the city at the end of the 15th century. Through innovative museographic design, the Museo della Città traces more than 35 centuries of the history of the Carpi area and presents the city’s environmental, economic, social, political and cultural development across four major periods.

Places of Remembrance, Theatre and Jewish History

Carpi still has two synagogues: one from the 18th century in the attic of the Portico del Grano and one from the 19th century with adjoining rooms belonging to the former Jewish university. The 19th-century synagogue now serves as a venue for exhibitions and meetings of the Fondazione Fossoli. The Museo Monumento al Deportato conveys the tragedy of deportation in thirteen rooms as an expression of the universal violence of human beings against one another. Its tour includes an outdoor courtyard with sixteen six-metre-high reinforced-concrete stelae engraved with the names of the main European concentration and extermination camps.

The Teatro Comunale is also part of the city’s historic character. It opened in 1861 in the neoclassical style and preserves a stage curtain painted by Giuseppe Ugolini. Another facet of local culture is represented by the Acetaia Comunale di Carpi: in the attic of the 18th-century Palazzo Scacchetti, you can discover the production process of traditional balsamic vinegar. The Acetaia offers free admission in the historic centre.

Getting There and Finding Your Way Around During Your Stay

Carpi is located on the Modena–Mantua railway line. The historic centre is 500 metres from the railway station. Anyone choosing a hotel in Carpi can take this specific proximity into account when planning their stay and consider culture, museums and a visit to the Acetaia as connected themes. Guided tours of the sites managed by the Fondazione Fossoli can be booked on any day of the week.

For further travel planning, you can also take Spilamberto, Campogalliano, Querciagrossa, Lesignana, Maranello, Casumaro, Medolla and Fiumalbo into consideration.

For the overarching travel overview: Modena.