Ospedaletti’s Surprise FAI Gem: Casa Laura

In Ospedaletti stands a residence that houses over 6,000 works of art and objects collected over a lifetime of research and passion for art. Casa Laura, now owned by the FAI—Fondo Ambiente Italiano—is not a museum in the traditional sense, but a real home where every room tells the story of its owners and their extraordinary collection.

Amid antique furniture, paintings, archaeological artifacts, and objects from all over the world, a visit here allows you to step into the spaces where Luigi Anton Laura and Renata Salesi once lived. If you’re planning a day trip during your stay in Liguria, here’s what to see at Casa e Collezione Laura in Ospedaletti, how to plan your visit, and why it’s worth a stop.

The Story of Casa Laura: Who Were Luigi and Renata Laura?[ back to menu ]

Casa Laura was born out of the passion of Luigi Anton Laura (1922) and Renata Salesi (1923), two young people from Sanremo united by their love of art, drawing, and beauty. Both held degrees in art history and drawing; they began their careers as teachers after World War II, before turning their attention to interior design and antiques—a journey that spanned over sixty years, during which they collected works of art, furniture, and objects from a wide variety of eras and places.

Theirs was not merely a collection, but the result of a lifetime of research. Auctions, historic estates, antique shops, and travels became opportunities to identify, preserve, and showcase pieces capable of telling a story. Over time, the house filled with furniture, paintings, archaeological artifacts, ceramics, textiles, and works of art, eventually housing over 6,000 pieces.

In 2001, having no children and fully aware of the value of what they had collected, Luigi and Renata Laura decided to donate their home and their entire collection to the FAI—Fondo Ambiente Italiano. Their wish was clear: to prevent everything from being scattered and to ensure that the house would remain intact, accessible, and vibrant.

This is precisely what sets Casa Laura apart from traditional museums. During the visit, you don’t feel as though you’re entering an exhibition space that was created after the fact, but rather a home that has remained true to the spirit of those who once lived there. The objects aren’t separated from daily life: they’re still part of the rooms, as if the owners had just stepped out and could return at any moment.

How to Get to Casa Laura[ back to menu ]

Casa e Collezione Laura is located in Ospedaletti, about 50 km from Agriturismo Le Girandole. The quickest route is via the A10 highway, exiting at Sanremo, then continuing toward Ospedaletti through Coldirodi.

Thanks to its close proximity, it’s an ideal destination for a half-day trip if you’re staying in our vacation apartments in Diano Marina. After your visit, you can also spend a few hours exploring other towns along the Riviera di Ponente, easily planning an itinerary that takes in the sea, villages, and points of interest.

If you'd like to extend your outing, you can combine your visit to Casa e Collezione Laura with other attractions in the area, or take a stroll along the Ospedaletti waterfront before heading back.

What to See During Your Visit to Casa e Collezione Laura[ back to menu ]

The tour of Casa e Collezione Laura takes visitors through numerous rooms spread across several floors, each furnished according to the taste and sensibility of Laura and her husband. The tour is unlike that of a traditional museum. Here, there are no rooms organized chronologically or display cases separating visitors from the objects: you enter the Laura couple’s home and walk through the rooms just as they were designed and lived in by the owners.

The exhibition, therefore, does not follow a chronological or geographical order, but guides visitors on a journey of discovery through works and objects from different eras and countries, selected over the course of more than sixty years of research in the world of antiques.

The Tapestry Room[ back to menu ]

The tour begins in the evocative Tapestry Room, one of the rooms that best exemplifies the refined taste of Laura and her husband. The walls are adorned with large late 18th-century French tapestries, based on cartoons attributed to Jean-Baptiste II, which transform the room into a harmonious blend of colors, allegorical scenes, and details rich in meaning.

Among the most fascinating works is the tapestry depicting the allegory of love. In the upper part, two lovers offer their hearts to Cupid, while in the lower scene, a wolf with its paw trapped in a trap serves as an ironic reminder that love can also bring suffering. The side walls, meanwhile, feature allegories of the four seasons, symbolizing the continuous passage of time.

In the center of the room stands one of the most elegant pieces of furniture in the entire house: a mid-18th-century Parisian secrétaire attributed to the cabinetmaker Germain Lambret. Crafted from precious Brazilian rosewood, it is striking for the richness of its inlay work and the extraordinary quality of its craftsmanship.

The eye is then drawn to a refined collection of Murano glass pieces by Venini, paired with an elegant Lalique chandelier made of stamped glass and decorated with motifs of hares and mistletoe leaves. Rounding out the space are a mid-18th-century Italian sofa and two 18th-century Venetian lanterns, once used on the boats that took part in the famous processions and festivals on the Grand Canal.

The Furniture Hall in Innsbruck[ back to menu ]

The tour continues into a room where European and Eastern art coexist in perfect harmony. On the walls hang two large English tapestries from the Mortlake workshop, dating from the late 17th century, depicting the Miraculous Catch of Fish divided into two panels, creating a dramatic effect that invites visitors to mentally piece together the entire scene.

Among the most intriguing objects is a French convertible piece of furniture from the mid-18th century. When closed, it looks like an elegant travel trunk, but as soon as you open it, it transforms—depending on your needs—into a dining table, a game table, or a lectern: a perfect example of the ingenuity of the cabinetmakers of that era.

The true highlight of the room, however, is the famous Innsbruck cabinet, crafted in 1590 and entirely inlaid on every side. Considered one of the masterpieces of the collection, it is striking for its rich decoration and the incredible precision of its craftsmanship, which still amazes those who observe it up close today.

The room also houses several valuable examples of Chinese art, including a rare black lacquer object decorated with mother-of-pearl, made in the 18th century for the English market. Next to it are a painted and gilded Japanese panel and a panel made of Hua Li wood, known in Europe as “ironwood” due to its extraordinary density and strength.

The details reveal just how fascinated the Lauras were by Eastern art. Jade and moonstone decorations embellish some of the panels: according to Chinese tradition, moonstone was believed to stimulate the imagination, because each cut revealed ever-changing shapes and patterns.

The Billiards Room[ back to menu ]

Of all the rooms in the house, the Billiard Room is probably the one that best reflects the personalities of Laura and her husband. It is, in fact, one of the few rooms that the owners actually use, and even today it is filled with books and objects that help preserve its homey atmosphere.

The name comes from the magnificent French billiard table crafted between 1795 and 1797, which is still complete with its original cues and accessories. More than just a piece of furniture, it serves as a testament to social life in aristocratic residences between the 18th and 19th centuries.

Next to the pool table, a true journey into ancient history begins. Here is an Indian altar dedicated to the god Vishnu, dating from between 1000 and 1200 AD, along with the oldest archaeological finds in the entire collection. Among these, two Egyptian diorite bowls stand out; dating back to 2400 B.C., they were crafted from one of the hardest materials to work with and remain perfectly preserved to this day.

The tour continues with several valuable jugs from Magna Graecia, originating from Puglia and dating back to the 4th century B.C., which attest to the Lauras’ interest in the great civilizations of the Mediterranean.

Among the most intriguing items is an English "social table" from the early 19th century: a revolving table used exclusively by men during social gatherings, which allowed them to share bottles and liquors without having to leave their seats.

Finally, on the mantelpiece are the two most fascinating objects of the entire tour: the Egyptian canopic jars from the 9th century B.C., originally used in the funerary rituals of Ancient Egypt. By the wishes of Laura and her husband, they now hold their ashes, creating a symbolic link between their personal history and a millennia-old tradition that makes this space even more evocative.

The Blue Living Room[ back to menu ]

One of the most elegant rooms in the house is the Salotto Azzurro, so named for the spectacular wallpaper that adorns its walls. These are hand-painted panels from the Canton area of China, created in the 18th century for the English market, when Oriental art was particularly sought after in European aristocratic residences. Laura and her husband salvaged them from an English residence and patiently adapted them to the room’s walls, piecing them together like a giant puzzle.

The furnishings bring together some of the most refined European pieces in the entire collection. Among these, a double diplomat desk stands out—a unique two-seater desk that allowed two people to work facing each other—adorned with an elegant mid-18th-century Chinese black lacquer finish. Next to it stands an elegant bureau cartonnier, a portable filing cabinet with small drawers labeled according to the documents they contain. Upon closer inspection, one can still make out the initials of the original owners—a detail that adds charm and history to this piece of furniture.

The room also features a delicate white-and-gold Bavarian piece of furniture and an important Piedmontese piece crafted between 1780 and 1790 in the workshop of the Bolzanigo cabinetmakers—the same artisans who worked for the House of Savoy. These pieces illustrate the high level of quality achieved by European cabinetmaking between the 18th and 19th centuries.

Among the most intriguing objects are two angels playing music, carved in bas-relief by the Florentine artist Agostino Di Duccio at the end of the 15th century, placed on a musician’s table, and a pair of elegant 18th-century Venetian wig boxes, decorated using the découpage technique. These small details offer a glimpse into the tastes and daily habits of life in the aristocratic residences of that era.

The Armory[ back to menu ]

The atmosphere changes completely as you enter the Armory. The ceiling, decorated with colorful bands reminiscent of European castle halls, sets the stage for a space with a character that is markedly different from the rooms visited so far.

Displayed along the walls is a rich collection of European weapons from historic estates and castles, the result of decades of research by Laura and her husband. Behind a gate, there is a collection dedicated to Eastern and Middle Eastern weapons, where visitors can see Japanese halberds, sabers, daggers, and scimitars from a wide variety of cultures.

Among the most unusual objects is a sword-gun, a rare example that combines a bladed weapon and a firearm in a single object. It is a testament to the technical ingenuity achieved in the past in the design of weapons and is one of the pieces that most intrigues visitors.

The same room also houses a precious wooden bust of a Venetian warrior saint, dating from the late 15th century. The relic that would have allowed for his identification has been lost over the centuries, and scholars are still working today to reconstruct his identity, making this artifact the focus of an ongoing historical investigation.

The Guest Room[ back to menu ]

Along with the Billiard Room, the Guest Room is one of the few spaces that Laura and her husband actually used. This is where they welcomed friends, relatives, and colleagues, which is why the room still retains an authentic, homey atmosphere today.

The centerpiece of the room is an elegant late 17th-century Sicilian wrought-iron bed, complemented by a exquisite early 17th-century French canopy bed embroidered in petit point. The eye, however, is immediately drawn upward, where the ceiling is entirely covered with painted canvases from a late 17th-century Venetian noble palace. Laura and her husband did not merely preserve them; they also repurposed them as built-in cabinets, demonstrating how, in their vision of home, art and functionality could coexist perfectly.

The room also houses one of the most important masterpieces in the entire residence: an elegant French ebony cabinet from the mid-17th century. During tours, it is usually opened to reveal the striking architectural perspective of its interior—a detail that often leaves visitors speechless.

Next to it is a small Lombard travel trunk from the late 16th century, decorated with semi-precious stones, polychrome marble, and rock crystal columns. This object was designed to accompany the travels of the aristocracy of that era and, once again, attests to the extraordinary variety of the collection housed at Casa Laura.

The Dining Room[ back to menu ]

The Dining Room is one of the most unique projects undertaken by Laura and her husband. Unlike the other rooms, it was created in the 1990s by enclosing part of the original garden. Although the structure itself is relatively recent, everything around it tells a much older story.

The walls, doors, and wainscoting actually come from a Neapolitan noble mansion dating from the late 18th century. Carefully dismantled, transported to Ospedaletti, and adapted to the dimensions of the new room, they have created a space that seems to have always been there, perfectly integrated with the rest of the house.

However, it is the small blue-and-white Chinese jars that most capture visitors’ attention. Their history spans three and a half centuries: they set sail from Canton at the end of the 17th century aboard a Dutch cargo ship bound for Europe, but the ship sank off the coast of Vietnam and the cargo remained on the seabed for over two hundred years. It wasn’t until the early 1990s that the wreck was salvaged by a specialized American company, and the artifacts were auctioned off by Christie’s in Amsterdam. It was on that very occasion that Luigi Laura purchased most of the vases now on display in the room.

If you look closely, you'll notice a curious detail: some appear more matte than others. This is the result of their long stay underwater, which has dulled the porcelain's original luster without compromising its integrity.

The same room also houses a rare pair of “lupini” vases that once belonged to the collection of Augustus II of Saxony, King of Poland and a great admirer of Oriental porcelain. These are exceptionally rare pieces, similar to those now housed in Europe’s most important museums.

Rounding out the room is an elegant 18th-century Irish chandelier, which helps create a refined atmosphere that blends perfectly with the rest of the space.

Mr. Laura's Office[ back to menu ]

Adjacent to the dining room is Mr. Laura’s study, likely the place that best reflects the collector’s personality. It was here that he spent most of his days studying, cataloging, and delving into the history of the objects he had collected throughout his life.

The room is entirely paneled with wood recovered from a building in Valtellina, while the bookcases and furniture house a rich collection of original 19th-century books. Among the furnishings, several Genoese folding tables and a striking double-body cabinet crafted by the Genoese cabinetmakers Numerosi stand out; the cabinet is recognizable by the refined floral and geometric inlays that characterized the workshop’s work.

On the main wall hangs a panel painting attributed to the workshop of Gentile Bellini, depicting the first Patriarch of Venice, flanked by two ancient Egyptian funerary masks that create a striking dialogue between Renaissance art and the civilizations of the ancient world.

Another part of the room is adorned with doors, paneling, and wooden decorations from the castle of the Dukes of Grosseto, an 18th-century English manor from which Laura and her husband salvaged numerous architectural elements, which they subsequently integrated with great artistry into the home.

Finally, among the most striking pieces is a rare Sicilian piece of furniture from the late 18th century, entirely covered in thin slabs of onyx. The surface of the stone reflects the light, creating ever-changing shades, and makes this piece one of the most valuable in the entire collection.

The Upper Floor and the Lady's Chamber[ back to menu ]

Going up to the upper floor, you reach the sleeping quarters of the house. The first room is dominated by a Napoleonic-era canopy, originally created as a field canopy and designed to accompany Napoleon and his generals during their military campaigns. In the same room are several French chairs from the late 18th century and a precious small table made in 1830 by the Genoese cabinetmaker Gaetano Descalzi, known as “il Campanino,” originally intended for the Royal Palace of Turin.

The most opulent room on this floor, however, is the Lady’s Chamber, where European and Eastern styles converge. Amid Venetian “arte povera” furniture, Brazilian rosewood-veneered cabinets, and an elegant Turkish-style bed from 1760, the piece that immediately catches the eye is an extraordinary silk and silver-threaded carpet from the Forbidden City in Beijing. The number of the room for which it was intended is still visible along the edge—a detail that attests to its authenticity and imperial provenance.

The room is complemented by an elegant chandelier from the Royal Manufactory of Berlin, fabrics from Brussels, and a precious Genoese rock crystal chandelier from the late 17th century—all testaments to the international taste that characterizes the entire collection.

The Hall of Genoese Furniture[ back to menu ]

The last room in the exhibition is dedicated to late 18th-century Genoese furniture, characterized by light colors, elegant lines, and pieces designed for the so-called “villas fuori porta”—the vacation homes of the Genoese aristocracy.

Here you’ll find nightstands, chairs, a chaise longue, and a large majolica-tiled fireplace, which was later renovated with tiles from Haute-Savoie—a testament to how even the oldest elements have continued to evolve over time.

When the weather permits, the tour concludes outdoors on a pleasant terrace that offers a different perspective on the mansion and the surrounding landscape. The tour concludes with a decorative lunette featuring a Roman grotesque recently restored by the FAI—a final detail that perfectly encapsulates the house’s philosophy: to preserve, enhance, and pass on works of art without separating them from the setting for which they were intended.

Casa Laura in Ospedaletti: an experience very different from a traditional museum[ back to menu ]

What makes Casa Laura special is not only the richness of the works on display, but above all the atmosphere you experience during your visit. Thanks to the wishes of the Laura couple, the house has remained true to its original appearance and continues to convey the feeling of being a lived-in home rather than an exhibition space.

The objects aren't simply displayed in a showcase; they are still part of the rooms for which they were originally chosen. Walking through the rooms, you get the impression of stepping into the home of two passionate collectors, where every piece of furniture, painting, or artifact tells a story and helps recreate the atmosphere that Luigi and Renata Laura had envisioned. It is precisely this balance between art, history, and everyday life that makes a visit to Casa e Collezione Laura unlike any other museum experience.

Useful Information for Visiting Casa e Collezione Laura[ back to menu ]

Casa e Collezione Laura is located at Via Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour 40, in Ospedaletti (IM). Visits are available exclusively with a guided tour, which is included in the ticket price, and allow visitors to discover the history of the estate and its collections through the narration of FAI guides.

To participate, we recommend booking online, especially during peak periods, as each session has a limited number of participants. You can book your tour and check for any updates directly on the FAI’s official website.

Hours of Operation[ back to menu ]

Casa e Collezione Laura is open to the public for guided tours on the following days:

• Thursday and Friday: 3:30–4:30 p.m. and 5:00–6:00 p.m.
• Saturday and Sunday: 10:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m., 11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m.–4:30 p.m., and 5:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.

For special opening hours or schedule changes, it is always advisable to check the FAI website for the latest information before your visit.

Ticket Prices[ back to menu ]

Guided tours are included in the ticket price. As of the publication of this article, the rates are:

• Full price: 15 €
• FAI Members: 7 €
• Reduced (ages 6–18): 7 €
• Students up to age 25: €9
• Children 5 and under: free
• Family (2 adults and 2 or more children ages 6 to 18): €38
• Residents of the Municipality of Ospedaletti: free admission

Discounted rates or free admission are also available for certain groups, including people with disabilities and their companions, licensed tour guides, accredited journalists, and others who are eligible.

To purchase tickets, book a tour, or check for updates on hours, special opening dates, and admission policies, please visit the official FAI page dedicated to Casa e Collezione Laura.

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