The Piperata Collection of Old Masters
The Collection of Old Masters was acquired by Giuseppe Piperata who, as a connoisseur of art, purchased the works of art and antique items mainly in antique shops throughout Italy during the first half of the 20th century. The collection was kept in his villa in Mali Lošinj. When the villa was demolished due to the expansion of the Lošinj shipyard after the Second World War, this valuable collection found itself without a home. Carlotta Rebecchi Piperata, Giuseppe Piperata's niece who owned the collection at that time, wanted to transfer it to Trieste; however, the authorities did not allow it. The newly established Commission of experts assessed the collection and decided that the most valuable part of the collection must remain in Mali Lošinj, while Mrs. Piperata was allowed to transfer the rest of it to Trieste, which she did. This most valuable part of the collection, which comprises 27 paintings, 3 chests and one commode cabinet, is now on permanent display at the Lošinj Museum. The collection was first presented to the public at the exhibition held in 1967; in 1972, the collection was repurchased by the then municipality of Cres - Lošinj. The collection was exhibited a few times in the following period; it has been permanently exhibited in the Fritzi Palace since 1998. The author of the permanent exhibition is Miroslav Gašparović, Professor of Art History and Philosophy and Director of the Museum of Arts and Crafts in Zagreb. The Piperata Collection has been integrated into the permanent exhibition of the Lošinj Museum. The collection consists of works created in the period from the 16th to the 20th century and it is dominated by Italian Baroque and Rococo paintings. The collection includes the works by some of the most prominent names of the world Baroque, such as Il Guercino and Francesco Solimena.
Giuseppe Piperata
Giuseppe Piperata (Mali Lošinj, October 3, 1883 - Sondrio, September 28, 1976), the son of Leopold, a teacher and school inspector, and Anne Suttora, a housewife. At the age of 11 he went to grammar school in Koper, and then in Trieste. After that he studied medicine, first in Naples and then in Vienna where he graduated. He participated in the First World War as a physician in the Austro-Hungarian army. For several years he worked as a doctor in Egypt and India, in Friuli and Treviso, and then as a doctor in the port of Trieste. From 1937 he was a doctor in Sondrio in Italy, where he remained for the rest of his life.
He started to build up the collection during his student days in Naples, where he acquired the first paintings of his future collection. His passion for the beauty accompanied him during his whole life. Although he was never rich he spent considerable financial resources, often giving up so many things in life to create a respectable collection of artworks.
