MUDIA – Diocesan Museum of Agrigento

Adjacent to the Cathedral stands the imposing Bishop’s Palace, a historic building that houses the MUDIA, the Diocesan Museum of Agrigento, a leading institution among the Diocesan Museums within the Agrigento Ecclesiastical Cultural Park. With its eight exhibition rooms, MUDIA tells the history of the Agrigento Diocese, from its rebirth after the Norman conquest of 1087 to the present day, through a captivating journey featuring medieval frescoes, baroque paintings, magnificent sacred objects and vestments. A journey through culture, art, and faith, recently enriched with innovative, interactive, and multilingual digital tools, such as AI-powered totems, touchscreens, virtual reality headsets, educational tablets, and a multimedia book. These new technologies break down cognitive barriers and offer all visitors an experience that clearly and intuitively reveals the original placement of the Cathedral’s artworks and the precious artifacts displayed within the Diocesan Museum of Agrigento.

A rare and fascinating journey through Art & Faith awaits you.

Particular mention goes to the medieval reliquaries of 12^th century and the portable Altar of Saint Gerlando which was allegedly taken on the crusades and used by the crusaders to celebrate Holy Mass prior to a battle when there was no Christian place of worship in the vicinities. Besides this mysterious religious object, you can admire frescoes of the 14^th and 15^th century which have been discovered during restoration of the Cathedral, religious articles brought back from Jerusalem by the crusaders, 18^th century paintings, ancient reliquaries and rare bejeweled vestments.

The MUDIA houses a small garden of great charm and history, recently restored and give back to the use: the “Episcopal Garden” built in 1700 by the will of Bishop Lucchesi Palli. Today it is become a multipurpose open space, between greenery, citrus fruits and the smells of Sicily preserveding the intimate and recollection qualities peculiar of ecclesiastical gardens. The citrus fruits of the garden after harvesting are processed with care and with methods respectful of tradition to become delicious jams to take away in convenient travel packages.The Garden is accessible from the Museum and in addition to offering refreshment and meditation to visitors, it is used for outdoor teaching and for exclusive events such as cultural evenings organized by Diocesan Museum. A stop at the MUDIA Diocesan Museum is a must: a visit to the Cathedral would not be complete without admiring its most precious treasures. Not to be missed