The Galata - Museo del mare is a maritime museum in the Italian city of Genoa. It is the largest museum of its kind in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

area and also one of the most modern in Italy. The museum is located on the grounds of the Porto Antico, in the ''Palazzo Galata'' (named after the ancient colony of

Galata Galata is the former name of the Karaköy neighbourhood in Istanbul, which is located at the northern shore of the Golden Horn. The district is connected to the historic Fatih district by several bridges that cross the Golden Horn, most notably ...

) in the Darsena district, where galleys were built in the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the La ...

era. It is close to downtown Genoa, the

Port of Genoa The Port of Genoa it is one of the most important seaports in Italy, in competition with the ports of Marseille and Barcelona in the Mediterranean Sea. With a trade volume of 51.6 million tonnes, it is the busiest port of Italy after the port ...

, and within walking distance of Genova Principe train station and Darsena metro stop. It opened in 2004 as part of Genoa's 2004 European Capital of Culture celebration.

History

is a historic district of

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_in ...

, Turkey, and until the 15th century, home to one of the most important Genoese communities in the Mediterranean. Therefore, in the late 19th century, when the Municipality of Genoa built a district of commercial docks, the oldest of these was given the name of the ancient colony. In the 19th century, this district served as a busy shipyard. In its lower part, the galleys of the

were built, and it was part of the "Arsenale", the most important military and maritime complex in the city. In the 20th century, Galata lost its commercial function and was abandoned. In the late 1990s, the municipality decided to establish the seat of the future maritime museum of Genoa in the Galata district. Opened in 2004, the museum is located in the ''Palazzo Galata'', whose renovation was designed by the Spanish architect Guillermo Vázquez Consuegra. In addition to a natural-scale reproduction of a Genoese galley, the museum houses several interactive rooms which help visitors understand what it meant to go to sea in different eras. One of these is the "La Merica" exhibition, open since 2011, dedicated to the history of Italian migration. It shows both the lot of exploited immigrants in Genoa in the 19th century and that of Italian emigrants who traveled to the United States, Argentina, and Brazil on overcrowded ships, and founded an Italian diaspora in the

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...

. Special emphasis is placed on current immigration trends as well as the

European migrant crisis The 2015 European migrant crisis, also known internationally as the Syrian refugee crisis, was a period of significantly increased movement of refugees and migrants into Europe in 2015, when 1.3 million people came to the continent to request ...

. In 2005, the Galata museum merged with the Commenda Museum-Theater and the Naval Museum of Pegli, together forming the Mu.MA - Istituzione Musei del Mare e delle Migrazioni (Institute of Museums of the Sea and Migration) to better combine the topics of the sea and migration.

The museum

The ground floor tells the tale of

galley A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be us ...

s. It houses a faithful reconstruction of a 17th-century Genoese galley placed on the original slipways. The same floor contains the Darsena weapons exhibit with its racks of knives, breastplates, and helmets. Other rooms hold portraits of Christopher Columbus and

Andrea Doria Andrea Doria, Prince of Melfi (; lij, Drîa Döia ; 30 November 146625 November 1560) was a Genoese statesman, ', and admiral, who played a key role in the Republic of Genoa during his lifetime. As the ruler of Genoa, Doria reformed the Rep ...

as well as precious world maps and ancient

portolans Portolan charts are nautical charts, first made in the 13th century in the Mediterranean basin and later expanded to include other regions. The word ''portolan'' comes from the Italian ''portulano'', meaning "related to ports or harbors", and w ...

which can be consulted using virtual navigation. The exhibit also holds several autographed documents belonging to Columbus. The first and second floors are dedicated to sailing and to shipyards. An entire room is occupied by a reproduction of the

brigantine A brigantine is a two-masted sailing vessel with a fully square-rigged foremast and at least two sails on the main mast: a square topsail and a gaff sail mainsail (behind the mast). The main mast is the second and taller of the two masts. Older ...

"Anna", on which one can access the deck and appreciate many original nautical instruments. Another room shows a reconstruction of a shipyard in the late 18th century, with its various carpentry tools in the mechanical workshop. In yet another room, a virtual reconstruction allows, through sound effects, to experience a storm off Cape Horn. The 1,200m² third floor houses an exhibition entirely dedicated to the era of transatlantic liners. Visitors can access the bridge of a steamship from the immigrant era, and a naval simulator offers a simulated crossing of the Atlantic from the Strait of Gibraltar to New York, passing under the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the United States. The copper statue, a ...

, then on to

Ellis Island Ellis Island is a federally owned island in New York Harbor, situated within the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, that was the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States. From 1892 to 1954, nearly 12 mill ...

. Among the objects collected during shipwrecks are a bell from the

SS Rex SS ''Rex'' was an Italian ocean liner launched in 1931. She held the westbound Blue Riband between 1933 and 1935. Originally built for the Navigazione Generale Italiana (NGI) as SS ''Guglielmo Marconi'', its state-ordered merger with the Lloyd S ...

and a lifebuoy used by one of the survivors of the

RMS Lusitania RMS ''Lusitania'' (named after the Roman province in Western Europe corresponding to modern Portugal) was a British ocean liner that was launched by the Cunard Line in 1906 and that held the Blue Riband appellation for the fastest Atlantic c ...

Shipowners' Hall

Located on the third floor of the museum, the Shipowners' Hall was opened on 2 March 2017; it tells the story of Genoa and its port through its protagonists: the shipowners.

Other exhibits and facilities

* The museum owns the raft which saved

Ambrogio Fogar Ambrogio Fogar (; 13 August 1941 – 24 August 2005) was an Italian sailor, writer, rally driver and all-round adventurer and television presenter. He was a Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, gold medal for athletic value, go ...

when his boat was hit by orcas in 1978 off the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubou ...

. Ambrogio survived the ordeal but his travel companion Mauro Mancini died while waiting to be rescued. In 2010, 32 years after the incident, the Fogar family decided to donate the raft to the Galata - Museo del mare museum. Other facilities include an exhibition hall, library, and a café with an outdoor terrace. The museum attracts many school field trips, and its proximity to Genova Principe train station and Darsena metro stop making it conveniently accessible.

The submarine museum

Since 26 September 2009, the diesel-electric submarine Nazario Sauro (S 518), launched in 1976 by Fincantieri di Monfalcone shipbuilders, has been moored at the dock in front of the Museo del mare. Intended by the

Italian Navy "Fatherland and Honour" , patron = , colors = , colors_label = , march = ( is the return of soldiers to their barrack, or sailors to their ship after a ...

to serve the municipality of Genoa, it has been used since 29 May 2010 as a floating annex to the museum.

Sections of the submarine

Parts which can be visited * 1. Propulsion electric motor * 2. Electrical panels * 3. Thermal engines * 4. NCO lodging * 5. Control room * 6. Officers' room * 7. Captain's lodging * 8. Officers' lodging * 9. Watertight hatch * 10. Sonar * 11. Crew lodging * 12. Launch chamber * 13. Canteen * 14. Kitchen

Floor layout

Ground floor

* Bookshop * "L'affresco" by Renzo Piano * Auditorium * 1. Genoa, the port after the Middle Ages * 2. Christopher Columbus, a Genoese sailor? * 3. Andrea Doria and the Genoese galleys * 4. Weapons of the Republic * 5. Arsenal: the galley on the slipway * 6. The playroom galley - for children

First floor

* 7. Galleys, between history and art * 8. The galley bridge * 9. Journey to the time of the galleys * 10. Atlases and globes * 11. The vessels * Storage area * Art rooms * Galata cafe

Second floor

* 12. Genoa and the age of revolutions * 13. Storms & shipwrecks * 14. The nautical sciences * 15. The "Anna" brig * 16. Shipyard *

Renzo Piano Renzo Piano (; born 14 September 1937) is an Italian architect. His notable buildings include the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris (with Richard Rogers, 1977), The Shard in London (2012), the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City (201 ...

document center * Learning space * 17.

Beppe Croce Andrea Giuseppe "Beppe" Croce (Genoa 11 December 1914 – Portofino 16 September 1986) was a sailor and yachtsman from Genoa, Italy. Biography In 1939 Croce won the Italian University Star Class championship. He also won the 1969 5.50 class It ...

Gallery * Exhibition gallery

Third floor

* 18. 1861, the call * 19. Genoa and its alleys is the starting point * 20. The Maritime Station * 21. Boarding, the departure * 22. Life on board the "Città di Torino" steamship * 23. La Boca (Genovese neighbourhood in Buenos Aires, Argentina) * 24. The farm (Brazil) * 25. Ellis Island (USA) * 26. Italy 2011 * 27. The steamer * 28. School of submarines - interactive * 29. The shipowners' room

Fourth floor

* Mirador Terrace * Vespucci Hall * Clock room

Image gallery

File:Genova - Galata Museo del Mare - Belvedere Vittorio Pertuso - panoramio.jpg, View from the top of the museum onto Belvedere Vittorio Pertuso File:Il brigantino Anna, poppa.jpg, Stern of the brigantine "Anna" File:Genova-Sottomarino Nazario Sauro (9).JPG, Detail of the submarine Nazario Sauro S 518 File:Museo del mare - panoramio - Emanuela Meme Giudic… (1).jpg, Building a galley

References

External links

{{Commons category
Official website

Museums of Genoa website

Costa Edutainment website
Museums in Genoa Museums in Italy Museums established in 2004 2004 establishments in Italy Tourist attractions in Genoa Maritime museums in Italy