Good knowledge of the historical development of civilisation from Antiquity to the contemporary period, with particular reference to Italy; sound knowledge of medieval, early modern and contemporary art history, together with Italian literature.

Students are introduced to the critical foundations of the concepts of museum, museography and museology. The museum is analysed through its historical development across the centuries, with particular attention to exemplary collectors, collections and case studies.

Knowledge and Understanding: students acquire an advanced knowledge of the history of collecting, the formation of museums and the historical, cultural and social development of the museum institution.

Applying Knowledge and Understanding: students apply museological methods and terminology to the critical analysis of museums, collections, exhibitions and heritage management.

Making Judgements: students develop independent critical judgement concerning museum models, heritage policies and contemporary museological issues.

Communication Skills: students present arguments clearly and accurately, employing appropriate scholarly terminology in both oral and written communication.

Learning Skills: students acquire the methodological tools required for independent study through the critical use of primary sources, specialist bibliography and museum documentation.

Lectures supported by PowerPoint presentations, case-study presentations.

Assessment consists of an oral examination designed to evaluate students' achievement of the learning outcomes. The examination assesses knowledge of the history of collecting and museum development, the ability to apply museological methodologies to case studies, independent critical judgement and the appropriate use of specialist terminology. Marks are awarded on the Italian thirty-point scale.

Exams appointments will be fixed in accordance to the suggested period by administrative staff of NWU.

The exam committee is composed of: Massimiliano Rossi (Chief), Daniela Caracciolo, Raffaele Casciaro (Members). Professor Massimiliano Rossi meets (online/in person) students by appointment mailing to massimiliano.rossi@unisalento.it.

Museology as a discipline: its principal theoretical and methodological approaches;

the mission of the contemporary museum: conservation, research, education, and the enhancement of cultural heritage; collections, cultural heritage, and heritage-making processes: documentation, cataloguing, and collections management; exhibition planning and design, museum interpretation, and communication; audiences, accessibility, inclusion, and participation; the international debate on the definition of the museum and the evolving role of museum institutions;

museums and digital technologies: the digitisation of collections, virtual museums, digital heritage, and new forms of cultural mediation and public engagement.

Attending students:

Susan M. Pearce, Museums, Objects and Collections. A Cultural Study (Leicester 1992).

Not - attending students should add:

Sharon Macdonald (ed.), A Companion to Museum Studies (second edition Blackwell 2010).