Galleria Borghese

Galleria Borghese is an art gallery in Rome housed in the early 17th-century Villa Borghese Pinciana, displaying the Borghese family’s Renaissance and Baroque collection. It is especially renowned for its Bernini sculpture and major paintings by Caravaggio and other masters.

Rooms arranged in the historic villa present sculpture and painting ensembles from the 15th to 18th centuries, including high-profile works by Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Caravaggio. The intimate scale of the villa means visits are limited and many of the highlights are concentrated in a relatively small number of rooms.

The Borghese collection was largely assembled by Cardinal Scipione Borghese in the early 1600s for display in the family villa; the gallery was later opened to the public under state management and has retained the original arrangement of many works. The villa and its holdings have been conserved and presented as a single historic collection.

Set within the Villa Borghese park north of Rome’s historic centre, the gallery is a short walk from Piazza del Popolo and the Spanish Steps and is accessed via the park’s paths and adjacent streets.

• Timed visits and limits: Visits are by timed ticket and limited to a two-hour slot per booking to protect the historic rooms and manage visitor flow, so advance booking is strongly advised.
• Origins of the collection: The collection was assembled by Cardinal Scipione Borghese in the early 17th century and remains concentrated in the original villa setting, featuring famous works by Bernini and Caravaggio.

What to See #

• Bernini gallery: Bernini gallery - rooms housing major sculptural works by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, including celebrated pieces from the Borghese collection that date to the 17th century.
• Painting galleries: Paintings rooms with major works by Caravaggio, Raphael, Titian and other Renaissance and Baroque masters assembled by the Borghese family in the early 1600s.
• Villa and gardens: The Villa and gardens - the early 17th-century Villa Borghese Pinciana and its surrounding formal gardens in the Villa Borghese park setting north of Rome's historic centre.