The visit allows you to critically approach a fascinating and controversial chapter in Italian scientific history, encompassing science, errors, humanity and ethical reflections.
The Cesare Lombroso Museum of Criminal Anthropology, inside the Palace of the Anatomical Institutes, is a unique institution dedicated to the study of human deviance with a focus on crime and madness. Founded in 1876 by physician and anthropologist Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909), a pioneer of modern criminology.
During his career, he studied numerous physical characteristics of criminals and people with mental illnesses, seeking to identify common traits among those who committed crimes.
Cesare Lombroso began collecting materials in the 1870s, studying skulls, skeletons and finds from mental institutions and prisons to demonstrate that the “born criminal” was an evolutionary atavism.
The Museum displays collections gathered primarily for Cesare Lombroso’s studies in the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century, consisting of anatomical specimens, drawings, photographs, evidence of crime, and artisanal and artistic works, including valuable works, created by inmates of mental institutions and prisons.
The exhibition focuses on 19th-century collections of skulls, skeletons, death masks, photographs, judicial artifacts, objects made by inmates and prisoners, and an overview of historical theories of deviance and their subsequent refutations.
The collection, among the most comprehensive in the world on criminal anthropology, includes over 10,000 pieces, with a selection on display:
– Anatomical specimens: Skulls, skeletons, and death masks of 19th-century criminals and “madmen” (e.g., the skull of Giuseppe Villella, a “model” of the criminal type).
– Documents and images: Anthropometric photographs, drawings, and measurements of evidence.
– Objects and Art: Weapons, clothing, prison models, and artwork created by inmates and psychiatric patients.
– Thematic sections: Female deviance, tattoos, anthropometry, and the history of psychiatry.
With a single Ticket, at the Palace of the Anatomical Institutes , in addition to the Lombroso Museum, you can also visit the Anatomy Museum and the Fruit Museum.
Cesare Lombroso
inside the Palace of the Anatomical Institutes
Via Pietro Giuria 15
Turin
Piedmont – Italy
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