The Municipal Art Collections are located in the symbolic place of civil and political power in Bologna: Palazzo d’Accursio, the municipal palace.

In the past, this was the residence of the Cardinal Legate, the Pope's representative when Bologna was part of the Papal States.

The 188 painted coats of arms covering the walls of the Urban Hall also speak of popes, legates, and governors who have written a piece of the city's history.

The view from the museum's windows is postcard-perfect: Piazza Maggiore, the Fountain of Neptune, the bell tower of the San Pietro cathedral, a piece of Via Emilia, and even the sanctuary of San Luca on the horizon.

There are rooms with a very recognizable identity: the Vidoniana Gallery with its frescoed ceiling and large dimensions reminiscent of a Roman loggia; the Rusconi rooms recreate the atmosphere of an 18th-century private home; the Boschereccia, typical of Napoleonic Bologna, creates the illusion of a green space with trees and fountains on the walls.

The museum's heritage, consisting of sculptures, paintings, furniture, and furnishings from different eras and styles, is the result of donations and acquisitions of private collections with some undisputed masterpieces: the Portrait of the Gonfaloniere by Artemisia Gentileschi, Apollo by Antonio Canova, and Ruth by Francesco Hayez.

There are also curious objects such as the collection of over 150 miniatures, only partially exhibited,

or those intimately linked to the city's life, such as the wooden automata of the Clock Tower or the exquisite lace and embroidery of Aemilia Ars, a famous Bolognese applied arts workshop active between the late 19th and early 20th centuries.