Antiquities Section The origins of the Civic Art Gallery date back to 1838, when the works of art that remained after the first Napoleonic suppression were brought together at the public library in what is now the Palazzo della Provincia. These were joined by paintings and frescoes removed from the Municipal Residence, the Cathedral, and other religious buildings. Count Pietro Guarini, gonfaloniere of Forlì, contributed significantly to the development of the new institution; subsequently, the collection grew considerably thanks to acquisitions promoted by the municipal administration and following the implementation of the confiscation laws of 1866–67. In 1922, the Library, Art Gallery, and Museums were moved to the current Palazzo del Merenda (built in the 18th century as the Ospedale della Casa di Dio per gli Infermi). In 1961, with the Verzocchi Collection—now housed in Palazzo Romagnoli—the Art Gallery acquired a collection of contemporary thematic works dedicated to labor, a unique phenomenon in the history of art collecting. The museum’s collections were further expanded with the addition of Flemish works and genre paintings from the Pedriali picture gallery (1964), including notable works by the French artist Jacques Sablet, Rachel Ruysch, and a large canvas by Giovanni Fattori. The Pinacoteca’s ancient art section, featuring works from the 13th to the 18th centuries, is now located in the San Domenico complex, home to the Civic Museums of Forlì, where, in a specially designed room, visitors can admire the Ebe, a famous work by the sculptor Antonio Canova, the leading exponent of Neoclassicism.
