Founded at the end of the 18th century, following the suppression of the religious bodies and including many private bequests, the Art Museum holds about three thousand paintings, and presents a fine panorama of paintings of the Veneto region from the early 14th to 19th centuries.
Works by Giotto, Squarcione, J. Bellini, Giorgione, Titian, Romanino, Bassano, Veronese, Tintoretto, Piazzetta and Tiepolo are housed in the museum, together with works by foreign artists, most of whom were Flemish and Dutch.
The collection of stone inscriptions contains architectural-decorative fragments found in Padua and the surrounding area. The bronzes on exhibition are only some of the vast number of sculptures, but they do illustrate a form of artistic expression that flourished in Padua between the 15th and 16th centuries.
The collections of artefacts (ceramics, precious stones, jewellery, fabrics, furniture and ivories), together with prints and drawings, are available for study by experts upon request.