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Why should the Palermo Museum and Antonino Salinas keep Arabic coins? New record on Canon Giovanni Pacetto's donation (1887)
Crisà, Antonino
2018
Abstract
The main scope of this paper is to understand the role of Italian authorities acquiring Arabic coins for Sicilian museums. In particular, this essay presents some valuable, unpublished records that are relevant to the history of state collections in Sicily. Antonino Salinas (1841–1914), Director of the Palermo Museum and skilful numismatist, played a leading role in the history of Sicilian archaeology. In 1877, he accepted a donation of some coins, which were offered by Giovanni Pacetto (1806-84), and he also purchased additional finds to increase the museum numismatic collections. Archival records are, therefore, vital to assess why Salinas appreciated Arabic coins, and how donations and acquisitions occurred in the early post-Unification period. These two valuable case studies can help us to understand the history of state collections and the role of the authorities in Sicily, who were constantly interested in acquiring not only classical but also Arabic coins for the newly-born Palermo Museum.
Publisher
EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste
Source
Antonino Crisà, “Why should the Palermo Museum and Antonino Salinas keep Arabic coins? New record on Canon Giovanni Pacetto's donation (1887)” in: Bruno Callegher and Arianna D’Ottone Rambach (Edited by), “5th Simone Assemani Symposium on Islamic coins. Rome, 29-30 September 2017”, EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste,Trieste, 2018, pp. 257-272
Languages
en
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