Rome: some (but not all) French people can visit these museums for free

Yes, the spotlight is finally shining on Paris (no), which, according to the Eternal City, is the only city that can match Rome. It is the people of Paris who have inherited this right to free museums. This was the result of a twinning agreement dated 30 January 1956, based on the following statement: "Only Rome is worthy of Paris; only Paris is worthy of Rome".

A few years later, in 1959, Rome installed an antique column crowned by a bronze caravel to symbolise the City of Lights. Conversely, in 1962, Paris installed a statue of a she-wolf in Square Paul Painlevé, in reference to the founding of Rome. As you can see, there's a real love affair between the two capitals.

Too bad for the rest of the French, it's only Parisians who win this privilege. To take advantage of it, all they have to do is show an identity document bearing a Paris address and the doors of culture will open for them. There are, however, a few specificities, as sometimes it is only the permanent exhibitions that are concerned and not the temporary exhibitions. What's more, this applies only to the museums of Rome, not to the Vatican museums or historic monuments such as the Colosseum or the Pantheon, which have recently become subject to admission charges.

Museums of modern art: GNAM

The National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art houses over 4,400 works by 19th and 20th century artists. It is the largest collection of modern art in Italy. It includes many famous Italian artists, as well as foreign artists you're probably familiar with, such as Edgar Degas, Mondrian and even Van Gogh.

Contemporary art museums: MACRO

The Museum of Contemporary Art in Rome, or MACRO, offers artists and visitors a 4350 m² exhibition hall dedicated to all kinds of temporary exhibitions by artists from Italy and all over the world. At the moment, a gigantic collection is dedicated to Pink Floyd, where they had already exhibited some of their creations during their lifetime.

Archaeological museums: Capitoline Museum

Even more gigantic, the Capitoline Museum covers almost 13,000 m². Within this area are statues, paintings and mosaics, all by Italian artists from the 15th century to the present day. The two Capitoline palaces containing these works were both designed by Michelangelo, and the museum itself is a work of art.

All the other museums concerned are listed on the City of Rome website