Textile production has been an important industry in Prato for over 800 years and has an excellent museum dedicated to the history of textiles in the city called the Museo del Tessuto (or Prato Textile Museum). Located in a former trimming factory called Campolmi within the medieval city walls of Prato, the museum has been in existence for four decades and is one of the best museums in Italy for fashion and textile history.
The collection contains over 6,000 objects, including archaeological textiles, medieval vestments, embroidery from the 15th-20th centuries, and equipment for every part of textile production. A permanent exhibition in the museum is organized by theme: the heater room, the room of antique textiles, the raw material and its processes, Prato, the city of Textiles, Prato and Fashion, and an area dedicated to modern material and a room for temporary exhibitions.
The collection contains over 6,000 objects, including archaeological textiles, medieval vestments, embroidery from the 15th-20th centuries, and equipment for every part of textile production. A permanent exhibition in the museum is organized by theme: the heater room, the room of antique textiles, the raw material and its processes, Prato, the city of Textiles, Prato and Fashion, and an area dedicated to modern material and a room for temporary exhibitions.
A contemporary textile section displays the tie between the museum and local companies, as well as the past and present and brilliant temporary exhibitions are held frequently. Including the current exhibition, “Whimsy and Reason. Elegance in Eighteenth-Century Europe,” which was opened on May 14th 2017 and will run until April 29th 2018.
Exploring “the style and trends of eighteenth-century artistic culture, through fashion, textiles and the decorative arts”, the exhibition showcases over 100 objects from textiles and men and women's garments to porcelain and paintings. Tracing the whimsies and fantasy of the early 18th century, through to the austere classical tastes of the neoclassical style in the latter half of the century, there is a vast gamut of things to see.
A collaboration with the Uffizi Gallery’s Costume Gallery, the Stibbert Museum in Florence and the Antonio Ratti Foundation’s Textile Studio Museum in Como, as well as other public and private institutions, this is an incredibly rich and fascinating exhibition, the likes of which is hard to see anywhere else in the world. If you are interested in the history of clothing and the rich and diverse trends of the 18th century, in particular, this is a must-see exhibition! Just find a vacation rental in Prato and come visit it for yourself.
Opening hours
Tuesday – Thursday: 10 am – 3 pm
Friday and Saturday: 10 am – 7 pm
Sunday: 3 pm – 7 pm
Closed on Mondays
Admission fee is included in the museum ticket price
Full price: € 7
Concession: € 5
