The core of the original collection was donated in 1842 by
Giuseppe Sigismondo Ala Ponzone and was supplemented from works from suppressed ecclesiastical institutions. Among the works in the collection are a
Saint Francis in Meditation by
Caravaggio and
The Gardener by
Giuseppe Arcimboldo. In the Sala del Platina, a section in the museum, is a large
sacristy armoire or cabinet, called the Armadio del Platina, originally from
Cremona Cathedral. The
Renaissance-style wood cabinet has a series of
intarsia tableaux, completed during 1477–1480 by Giovanni Maria da Piadena, called il Platina, and restored for this museum in 2007. The museum also houses historic musical instruments, with the nucleus being a collection donated by
Carlo Alberto Carutti. ==External links==