ilCartastorie, the museum at the Banco di Napoli Historical Archives, was created as a way to allow the public access to the enormous patrimony of documents from the ancient Neapolitan public banks. Within these documents are nearly 17 million names, hundreds of thousands of payments, along with detailed reasons for payment which paint a fascinating picture of Naples and all of Southern Italy during the past 450 years, from 1573 to today.

ilCartastorie, in a myriad of ways, from multimedia exhibits to creative writing workshops, effectively brings back the voices, the stories and the historical events which have been immortalized in the pages of the large tomes found at the Archives.

The multimedia itinerary Kaleidos (Stefano Gargiulo – Kaos Produzioni), the heart of the Museum of the Historical Archives, traverses the first floor of the Archives. The patrimony of stories that the ancient volumes and the polizze (orders of payment) conserve are translated into emotions, stories, voices and images that suggest the vastness and the beauty of this very special patrimony. Visitors learn interesting details about Caravaggio’s masterpieces in Naples, the plague of 1656, the intuitions and torments of the Prince of Sansevero, as well as the innumerable stories of Neapolitans and foreigners.