The Palazzo di Propaganda Fide, a 17th century Baroque architectural masterpiece in Rome designed by Bernini (Gianlorenzo) and Francesco Borromini, has opened its doors to the public in the form of a museum, called the Museo Missionario di Propaganda Fide.
Museo Missionario di Propaganda Fide Rome
Address, opening hours and admission
Address: Via di Propaganda, 1/C – Rome (tel. +39 06 69880266). Opening hours: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 14.30 till 18.00. Admission: 8 Euros (concession: 6 Euros; children age 0-5: free). At the ticket office you can request a free guided tour.
History and description
The museum highlights 400 years of missionary work by the Catholic church, through artefacts such as documents, sculptures and photographs assembled by the Congregation of Propaganda Fide.
After a restoration that that cost around 17 million Euros and saw the building’s foundations strengthened and the chapels and library reconstructed, visitors can now, for the first time, visit the chapels and hallways of the palazzo.
The building used to be the headquarters of the Congregation of Propaganda Fide, a religious order founded by Pope Gregory XV in 1622 and re-baptized the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples by Pope John Paul II. This organization’s aim was to spread Catholicism and also to protect missionaries from being prosecuted.
Highlights of the Museo Missionario di Propaganda Fide
- Bernini‘s wooden library with Pope Urban III symbols (the Barberini bee) adorning the ceiling.
- Borromini‘s Chapel of the Magi, its theme (the epiphany of the three wise men) an allegory for converts to Christianity finding salvation through Christ.