Page 234 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - ΟΚΤΩΒΡΙΟΣ 2024

MISSION TO GENOA

actively engage with the exhibits, discovering
Genoa’s maritime heritage and interacting with a
multitude of displays and panoramas.

A journey through time and sea
The visitor’s journey at the Galata Museo del
Mare begins on the ground floor, which is ded-
icated to the port of Genoa itself. The harbour
is presented as a “living organism”, constantly
expanding, adapting to changes, and evolving.
When Genoa began to establish itself as a leading
maritime power in the Mediterranean, its port was
constantly expanded, with extensive excavation
groundwork being completed to accommodate
larger vessels.
Part of the ground floor is allocated to the story
of Christopher Columbus. Although the explorer’s
routes have been a matter of historical debate,
his association with the city of Genoa can hardly
be disputed. The rest of the museum's initial halls
cover the history of Genoa as a commercial and
naval powerhouse, showcasing among other
things the arsenal of weapons used by soldiers of
the Genoese Republic up until the 17th century.
The exhibition culminates in one of the museum’s
most impressive installations: a life-size recon-
struction of a 1622 galley, displayed in the muse-
um’s halls as it would have been more than 400
hundred years ago – with the ship’s stern facing
the water. For many centuries, Genoa’s power and
independence were associated with its fleet of
eral architectural changes, with the most recent galleys. The installation highlights the significance
one adding a new glass exterior and many terraces of this type of vessel, as well as the conditions of
overlooking the city and port of Genoa. In 2009, life on board – showcased with the inclusion of
the submarine S518 Nazario Sauro was moored human models of sailors and soldiers. Although
near the Galata Museum, becoming Italy’s first these ships were equipped with sails, their attack-
floating museum and part of the main museum’s ing prowess was dependent on the multiple sets of
attractions. Additionally, two of the port’s origi- oars and rowers that were situated on the rowing
nal cranes were refitted on the dock right outside benches. Thanks to various openings and access
the museum entrance, completing the maritime points on the ship’s hull, visitors can access all
landscape. parts of the galley, including the deck, and can
With over 12,000 m of exhibition space, 31 halls, put themselves in the position of the crew, get-
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and 5 immense floors filled with a variety of recon- ting a firsthand understanding of the conditions
structions and 4,300 original objects, the Galata on board.
Museo del Mare is the largest maritime museum Reaching the first floor, visitors are presented
in the Mediterranean. Each floor tells the story of with a beautiful collection of paintings from the
a different era in Genoa's centuries-long relation- 16th and 17th centuries. A magnificent painting
ship to the sea. of Chios, which was a Genoese-controlled state
The visitor's journey through the museum is between 1346 and 1566, stands out to Greek audi-
chronological as well as thematic: from the medi- ences. Room 11, in particular, is quite distinctive:
eval origins of the Genoese Republic and the life the Room of Atlases and Globes hosts maps and
of Christopher Columbus to the history of all types globes produced between the 16th and late 18th
of vessels and the establishment of Genoa as Ita- centuries. With the addition of numerous digital
ly’s main emigration port in the modern era, the screens, visitors can explore the museum’s col-
Galata Museo del Mare provides a comprehensive lection of atlases alongside a pair of globes of
presentation of Genoa’s maritime past. enormous size originally made by Venetian car-
Throughout the exhibition, visitors are invited to tographer Vincenzo Coronelli.

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