Cappuccini Provincial Archive

The historical archive of the Province of Genova of the Friars Minor Cappuccini holds records dating back to 1538, the year when the monks arrived, called by the hospital’s administration to take care of the sick.

Within a century the Province had monasteries spread throughout the Ligurian region, from Sarzana to Mentone, and as far north as Ovada and Voltaggio. The documents testify of the monks’ apostolic activity in the area, the missions in Africa and South America and more generally their relationship with the population and the civil and religious institutions.

The papers reflect the historical events of five centuries, with first-hand reports not only of devotional aspects and charitable practices, but also of works of art, of political and social change and of the recent world wars. The documents are varied in kind and consist of correspondence, notarial deeds, papal seals, decrees, memoirs, monks’ biographies, records of ordinations, paperwork concerning building and restoration work on the church and monasteries, and photographs. The overall quantity comes to around 4000 archival units, all reorganised and inventoried with CEIAr software.

The inventories of the monasteries’ archival assets are published on the Cultural Heritage of the Church website www.beweb.chiesacattolica.it. The Provincial Curia fund, holding the oldest documents relating to the government of the province, the missions and the lives of the monks, has not yet been published but does have a digital inventory.