Museo Civico (Civic Museum)

Description:

• The Palazzo di Città is Amalfi's Town Hall. On its southern wall hangs a famous Pannello in ceramica, a majolica panel relating key moments in Amalfi's history. Created in the 1970s by artist Diodoro Cossa, it is made of two series of large colored tiles, which you can read from left to right. It starts with the founding of Amalfi by a group of ancient Roman refugees and proceeds to the town's growth into an important commercial and political power in the Mediterranean, the building of the cloisters, and the arrival of the body of Saint Andrew. Then comes Amalfi's decline and its slow recovery -- and along the way, the invention of the compass, and the production of paper. Inside the Town Hall, the Museum is interesting mostly for history buffs and concerns local events. It contains, however, at least one very important piece: the Tabula Amalphitana, the original Maritime Code written around the 11th century to regulate maritime traffic in the Mediterranean (this was enforced till at least the 16th century). The artifact was redeemed from Austria in 1929 and brought back to Amalfi. Also interesting are the original pastel drawings for the Duomo's mosaics by Domenico Morelli.

• © Frommer's 2013