The Civic Museums of Villa Paolina are located in the historic center of the city of Viareggio. Villa Paolina is a historic building that belonged to Paolina Bonaparte, Napoleon's sister. The villa was built in 1822 in the place where, it is thought, Percy Bysshe Shelley died following a shipwreck. Paolina loved the artist's poems so much that she wanted to pay homage to him with a villa near the sea. Today the villa is home to the Civic Museums of Viareggio which are composed of: the archaeological museum, the museum of musical instruments and the picture gallery. The Archaeological Museum exhibits prehistoric materials found in north-western Tuscany. The Museum of Musical Instruments is packed with over 400 pieces from all over Europe, Africa, Asia and America from various eras. Finally, the Pinacoteca is dedicated to Lorenzo Viani, a well-known contemporary artist from Viareggio. In addition to exhibiting the works of Viani, masters of the twentieth century such as Carlo Carrà and Giorgio de Chirico are part of the exhibition. The Civic Museums offer a 360 degree overview of the history and artistic evolution of Viareggio from prehistory to contemporary art.