Culture archives: Cultural Italian news in English - Page 9 of 64

Arrosticini: Abruzzo’s iconic lamb skewers

January 11, 2026January 11, 2026Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

Arrosticini are one of Abruzzo’s most recognisable dishes and a symbol of its pastoral history. Also known locally as arrustelle or rustelle, arrosticini are small skewers of sheep meat.

Rare stylus uncovered in Sicily. Image credit: Superintendency of Caltanissetta/Sicilian Government

Sicilian dig reveals rare stylus with Dionysus motif

January 11, 2026January 11, 2026Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

Archaeologists in Sicily have uncovered a rare stylus decorated with explicit religious imagery.

Libyan sibyl detail from the Sistine Chapel

A rare Michelangelo study for the Sistine ceiling up for auction

January 10, 2026January 10, 2026Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

A newly identified Michelangelo study has come to light, linked directly to the Sistine Chapel ceiling. It is the only known preparatory study for the ceiling ever to appear at auction.

Digital image of page from a book within the Collezione Orientale di Aldobrandino Malvezzi de' Medici. From the Impronte Digitali at University of Florence library

University of Florence launches new digital library

January 10, 2026January 10, 2026Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

The University of Florence has launched Impronte Digitali, a new digital library aimed at preserving and sharing rare historical materials held across its libraries.

Biblioteca medicea laurenziana Image credit: No machine-readable author provided. Sailko assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Discover the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in Florence

January 6, 2026January 6, 2026Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

Conde Nast Traveler’s article on the 7 beautiful libraries set inside UNESCO Heritage sites noted the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in Florence in its number. A quiet treasure, it is one of many Medici sites created to promote intellectual thought. Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana is not a place you stumble into by accident. Tucked behind the Basilica […]

Beatrice Venezi appointment as musical director at La Fenice leads to strike

Brugnaro: give Beatrice Venezi a chance

January 3, 2026January 3, 2026Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

Venice mayor Luigi Brugnaro urged musicians at La Fenice to give newly appointed musical director Beatrice Venezi a chance, amid ongoing protests. Speaking ahead of the New Year concert at the historic opera house. Brugnaro called for dialogue between Venezi and the orchestra. “I think it would be appropriate to give her a chance,” he […]

AI to help reconstruct Cimabue fresco at Assisi basilica

December 28, 2025December 28, 2025Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

Experts are exploring the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to help reassemble a priceless fresco by the early Renaissance artist Cimabue that was shattered nearly 30 years ago by powerful earthquakes in central Italy.

Conservators restore frescoes at Villa di Poppea in Italy. Image courtesy Archaeological Park of Pompeii.

New frescoes emerge at Villa di Poppea, Oplontis

December 28, 2025December 28, 2025Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

Archaeologists working at the Villa di Poppea in Oplontis, near Pompeii, have uncovered vivid new frescoes and extended parts of the ancient villa believed to date to the mid-1st century BCE. The discoveries form part of ongoing excavation and conservation work in the western sector of the site, and are beginning to reveal previously hidden […]

Uffizi announces festive opening schedule

December 26, 2025December 26, 2025Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

The Uffizi Galleries have published their opening calendar for the Christmas and New Year holiday period. The schedule applies to the Uffizi Gallery, Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens, Florence’s main state museums. Full closures are planned on only two days over the festive period.

aerial view of san casciano dei bagni excavations 2022

San Casciano finds rewrite sanctuary history

December 26, 2025December 26, 2025Deborah CaterLeave a Comment

New discoveries from the 2025 excavation campaign at San Casciano dei Bagni are reshaping the history of one of Italy’s most important archaeological sites. Researchers say activity at the Santuario del Bagno Grande began in the late 5th century BC. This is around two centuries earlier than previously believed.