Italy also had its South Kensington Museum

the educational collection of the Royal Industrial Museum of Turin in 1862

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4025/rbhe.v23.2023.e267

Keywords:

educational museum, educational objects, primary school, secondary school

Abstract

The article aims to bring to light a recent discovery with respect to the history of Italian pedagogical museums: 12 years before the official opening of what is recognized as the first. Since 1862, in Turin, a section of the Royal Industrial Museum has been dedicated to the collection of books and teaching materials to the primary and secondary schools. This collection was a direct expression of the London Universal Exhibition of 1861, from which the Royal Commissioners returned with the idea of copying the South Kensington Museum. The article reconstructs the history of the collection and its exposure, following its evolution until its disappearance. The aim of this article is to offer a significant piece of the history of the historical-educational heritage in Italy and its musealization. 

Author Biography

  • Francesca Davida Pizzigoni, Università di Torino, Turim, Itália

    INDIRE researcher (National Institute of Documentation, Innovation and Educational Research) and professor at the University of Turin. She coordinates a working commission of SIPSE - Italian Society for the Study of Historical and Educational Heritage and studies the historical-educational heritage and the history of publishing for children. Among her most recent works are "Tracce di patrimonio. Fonti per lo studio della materialità scolastica nell'Italia del secondo Ottocento" (Pensa, 2022) and "Il Catalogo perduto. La producedione per l'infanzia della casa editrice cattolica SEI di Torino” (FrancoAngeli).

Published

2023-06-30

How to Cite

Pizzigoni, F. D. (2023). Italy also had its South Kensington Museum: the educational collection of the Royal Industrial Museum of Turin in 1862 . Revista Brasileira De História Da Educação, 23(1), e267. https://doi.org/10.4025/rbhe.v23.2023.e267

Funding data