Museo Civico di Archeologia Storia Arte – Palazzo Traversa

Heir to the 'Museo Popolare di Storia e d'Arte Braidese' (Braidese Museum of History and Art) inaugurated in 1919, it was set up on the initiative of Euclide Milano, a teacher and scholar of ethnography and local history, who dedicated himself with passion and tenacity to the collection.
The original project envisaged the subdivision into sections aimed at documenting the history of the Braidese territory starting from the Roman period when the city of Pollentia (today Pollenzo, a hamlet of Bra) prospered, celebrating the illustrious Braidesi and the memory of the Fallen in World War I, and finally, creating a local art gallery designed to 'educate the taste buds' of the citizens.
The initial collections of memorabilia, which came as a result of donations and purchases expressly solicited by Milan himself, were augmented over time by further acquisitions of works and artefacts.
Since it did not have its own premises, from the beginning the history museum occupied some rooms at the 'Craveri' natural science museum, until their separation in 1972.
In 1991, the new premises were inaugurated in the restored Palazzo Traversa, preserving the archaeological section dedicated to Pollentia and amalgamating the artistic and historical collections. Probably built around the middle of the 15th century, the original late Gothic core of Palazzo Traversa was followed by extensions found in the land registers of the 18th and 19th centuries. The brick façade is characterised by three orders of pointed mullioned windows with two lights. To the east on the inner courtyard are three orders of arcaded loggias with round-arched masonry arches on the 1st and 2nd floors and wooden structures in the balcony on the top floor.
The exhibition route of the museum is spread over three floors. The archaeological section is located on the ground and second floors. The rooms on the main floor display works of art and those of historical interest.