At the far end of Piazza Navona, going towards Corso Vittorio Emanuel, is a rather unobtrusive building housing the Palazzo Braschi, part of the National Museum of Rome. The original construction was commissioned by the nephew of Pope Pius VI, Luigi Braschi Onesti. Reportedly, the nephew gained his wealth from the many privileges granted to him by his uncle, the Pope ( can you say Papal nepotism?). By 1790, the Braschi Onesti family had the completed Palace. However, much of the family's wealth quickly vanished and they sold the palace to The Italian State. For awhile, it served as the Ministry of the Interior until Benito Mussolini turned it into his political headquarters. Following the end of World War Two, 300 homeless families lived in the palace until 1949, doing much damage to the frescoes and stealing several artifacts. It has been part of the National Museum of Rome since 1952.
In the entry foyer is this statue of Saint John the Baptist, baptizing Jesus Christ.
One of the works of art that was not damaged nor stolen during the occupation of the homeless, is this Braschi family one-person transport.
This beautiful mosaic table was located in one of the upstairs rooms.
In the early 1800's some effort was made to restore the old Roman Senate. Pictured here, on the left is the uniform of a Roman Senator at that time, and on the right is the uniform of a Senate Page.
In the grand ballroom, we found these beautiful tapestries and this rather large wooden model of what appeared to be St. Peter's Basilica as it looked two centuries ago.
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