Italian Readers-CASTEL SANT ANGELO
 

Does anyone have suggestions on how to find history of the armory at Castel Sant Angelo in Rome, any catalogs of holdings?
Any way to reach officials controlling these areas of this historic location.
All that can be found online is tours and sightseeing material.

Interested in the weapons used by the Pontifical Zouaves who defended the Vatican in 1860s during unification campaigns.

I was there once and I was not impressed. Care of the swords and polerarms was poor, and there was quite some fumbling. However I remember to have read a title (maybe an article) on that collection.

The one museum that has some interesting stuff on Italian unification is the Stibbert in Florence. Stibbert himself fought in those wars.

IIRC, Spain sent a military unit to help the Pope.

Thank you so very much for responding!!! and especially with this information which is incredibly helpful.
It has always been curious to me why communicating with Italy is so difficult, and why, as you note, there seems to be so little attention to historic arms.
Obviously there is arms activity there, auctions, the Stibbert, and hints of some sort of arms collecting....but it is so covert.

As can be seen with my thread on this mysterious saber that MAY be linked to the legion of 'Zouaves' who fought in defense of the Pope and the Holy See in the 1860s......resounding ZERO response....from my first attempt in 2021....then the recent one.
I published this in Sweden in 2004, with same dismal reaction.

Still, I am determined to find out if these langet markings CsA , indeed represent the CASTEL SANT ANGELO, which was suggested to me by Richard Dellar years ago after I had exhausted all potential for this being either Confederate from Civil War or Spanish colonial (Carlos IV).

Your note on the Spanish sending forces in for the Papal Volunteers is enticing as well, as there was of course potential for this to be among the many British arms that went into the Peninsula in Napoleonic campaigns to have found their way to this armory after end of hostilities.
The British were unloading huge volumes of weapons as surplus, and the arming of the entire Mexican army was from these stores.

Perhaps I can find hopeful contact with Stibbert!!

I've been there and it's impressive, with little interpretation of the artefacts. A friend recently had a tour - I'll ask him if he has a poc.

@Jim - I'll PM you ref a contact at the Stibbert.

Thank you SO much!!! Most valuable help with this very esoteric topic, and just what I needed.

Very best wishes,
Jim

Hi Jim , i will also pm you a specialist for the Museums in Italy
Kind regards
Ulfberth

Thank you! You guys are great! Ive never had much luck reaching Italian contacts indirectly, so it really helps to have names.