Pinacoteca Provinciale

Lonely Planet review

Behind the impressive neoclassical façade of the Palazzo della Provincia, you'll find the Pinacoteca Provinciale. The collection focuses firmly on southern Italian artists and the works span centuries. Pieces include fragments of 11th-century sculpture blown off churches during WWII, 13th-century icons and 15th-century Venetian altarpieces, huge canvases from the 17th- and 18th-century Neapolitan school, and a few 19th-century pieces.

In all, there are 16 rooms to wander through, but, although the collection is comprehensive in its local coverage, there are really only a few pieces that will wow an art lover. Stand-out works include Bartolomeo Vivarini's (c 1440-1499) lustrous altarpieces in Room 2; Giovanni Bellini's (c 1430-1516) St Peter Martyr in Room 3; Andrea Vaccaro's (1604-1670) Caravaggio-inspired works in Rooms 7 to 9, particularly his almost black canvas with the luminous Saint Catherine of Alexandria; Luca Giordano's (1634-1705) St Peter of Alcantara in Room 13; and some lighter, more frivolous pieces by Francesco Netti (1832-94) in Room 16.