Uffizi Gallery hosts Roman Africa talks to 6 November
Published on 10/21/2026 at 18:22 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWSRoman Africa talks and museum setting
- Alessandro Muscillo leads the 23 October 2026 session at the Paolucci Auditorium.
- The programme traces Giovanni Pagni's 1667 expedition and African inscriptions in Medici and Lorraine collections.
- Giorgio Vasari's building was constructed between 1560 and 1580.
- Piazza della Signoria provides the Florence reference point for the museum.
- Alberto Gavini closes the series on 6 November 2026 with a study of an African inscription.
Uffizi Gallery in Florence is hosting Roman Africa talks from 16 October to 6 November 2026, with the remaining sessions taking place at the Paolucci Auditorium. The programme examines African antiquities in Medici and Lorraine collections through the seventeenth-century expedition of Giovanni Pagni.
The talks are organised by the Uffizi and university scholars. The Italian museum name is used by the institution, but the visitor-facing programme is available through its official event listing.
Roman Africa talks continue in Florence through 6 November
The series began on 16 October and continues on Fridays until 6 November 2026. The official programme places every meeting at the Paolucci Auditorium of the Uffizi and lists admission as free until capacity is reached.
The next listed session is on 23 October, when Alessandro Muscillo of the Uffizi discusses the growth of African inscriptions in Medici and Lorraine collections. On 30 October, Novella Lapini of the University of Florence examines religious dedications and tributes to the Domus Augusta in Pagni's African epigraphs. Alberto Gavini of the University of Sassari closes the series on 6 November with the history and archaeology of an African inscription from Tunisia to Florence. The official programme for the talks lists each date, speaker and venue.
Vasari's building frames a study of collected antiquities
The subject connects the talks with the museum's ancient collections, including Roman sculptures and busts assembled by the Medici family. The programme's focus on inscriptions therefore sits alongside objects that are already part of the museum's account of antiquity.
The gallery occupies the first and second floors of the large building designed by Giorgio Vasari. Construction took place between 1560 and 1580, while the collections range from medieval painting to modern art. This architectural setting gives the 2026 programme a direct link to both the museum's Renaissance history and its ancient sculpture holdings.
The museum describes its collection as including Roman sculptures and copies after lost Greek originals. Its location beside Piazza della Signoria also places the Paolucci Auditorium within Florence's historic centre. These details are set out in the museum's description of the building and collections.
Giovanni Pagni links Tunisia with Medici collections
The talks return to the journey of Giovanni Pagni, described by the organiser as a doctor and archaeologist sent to the court of Tunis in 1667. During that stay, he visited archaeological sites including Carthage and gathered epigraphic and archaeological evidence.
That history explains the programme's sequence. It begins with Pagni and the inscriptions of Barbary, moves through the fortunes of African inscriptions in Florentine court collections, and ends with a close study of one inscription. The venue and the subject are therefore connected through the collections discussed in the talks, rather than through a separate city event.
Visiting Uffizi Gallery: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- The Roman Africa talks run from 16 October to 6 November 2026 at the Paolucci Auditorium of the Uffizi.
- The remaining listed sessions are on 23 October, 30 October and 6 November, and the organiser states that admission is free until capacity is reached.
- The museum stands beside Piazza della Signoria in Florence, with the Paolucci Auditorium inside the Uffizi complex.
- The building extends across its first and second floors, and the museum's collections include ancient Roman sculpture as well as paintings from the Middle Ages onwards.
- The organiser lists the talks at 5pm, with the time applying to each appointment in the programme.
- Italy's official language is Italian and its national currency is the euro.
For visitors, the clearest link between the current programme and the museum is the combination of a dated talk series, a named auditorium and collections connected to Roman antiquity.
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Frequently asked questions about Uffizi Gallery
When do Roman Africa talks take place at Uffizi Gallery?
The series runs from 16 October to 6 November 2026, with the remaining sessions on 23 October, 30 October and 6 November.
Where is Uffizi Gallery and how do you get there?
The museum is beside Piazza della Signoria in Florence. The talks take place inside the complex at the Paolucci Auditorium.
What is Uffizi Gallery?
It is a museum housed in Giorgio Vasari's building, constructed between 1560 and 1580, with paintings and ancient Roman sculpture in its collections.
