The Merano Civic Museum, also known as the Palais Mamming Museum, together with the Bolzano Civic Museum, is one of the oldest museums in South Tyrol. The museum is housed in the magnificent Palais Mamming, directly in the shadow of Merano's parish church - and what a home! The collection is displayed in the restored and historically significant rooms of the baroque palace, as well as in the new extension, some of which have been carved into the rock of Monte San Zeno. Historic architecture successfully alternates with modern architecture, dominated by steel and glass, in part to bring plenty of natural light into the new exhibition rooms. Franz Innerhofer, a doctor from Merano, gave birth to the museum with his collections. The collection includes 100,000 objects and 20,000 photographs. It offers an overview of the development of the city, prehistory and ancient history, tells about the lives of Merano's citizens, and concludes with modern and contemporary art.
Some unique pieces make this collection particularly fascinating including, an Egyptian mummy, the Sudanese weapons collection of the adventurer Slatin Pascha, a typewriter by Peter Mitterhofer, the inventor of the typewriter and a funeral mask of Napoleon.
