Crespi Bonsai Museum

Saturday 06/01/24 the museum is closed.

Monday: 14:30-19:00 - Thuesday-Saturday: 9:30-12:30 / 14:30-19:00 - Sunday 9:30-12:30

Unique in the world, a few kilometres away from Milan, this Eastern spot completely integrated in the Western world gathers a precious collection of centenarian trees, pots and ancient books.

Opened in 1991, the Crespi Bonsai Museum, first permanent bonsai museum in the world,  was born from Luigi Crespi's resolution to allow everyone to admire a precious collection, including centuries-old plants, antique pots and books and manuscripts from the Far East. The museum structure in cement and steel, combined with natural materials like slate and stone of barge,brings out the wonderful samples exposed on stone and wood tables. The Crespi collection consist of about two hundred pieces, exposed on rotation according to seasons, since every species has a better moment to be exposed.
Year after year the collection improves, thanks to the devoted care of Luigi Crespi and the interventions of Master Nobuyuki Kajiwara, museum's responsible and teacher at the triennial course at the bonsai university. The masterpiece of the collection is the millennial Ficus retusa linn, placed at the centre of a pagoda between two nineteenth-century wooden Chinese temple dogs. on a table of solid slate are displayed numerous other authentic specimens, many well over a hundred years old and trained by famous Japanese masters, among which are the works of Kaneko, Kato, Kawamoto, Kawahara and Ogasawara. The collection of bonsai containers includes antique Chinese conteiners from the Ming and Ching dynasties. Of extreme value also is the library which houses both antique and modern volumes, precious incunabula and rare texts from all over the world. A place of importance is occupied by a reconstruction of the "tokonoma", the corner which in every Japanese house is set aside for the displaying of objects of spiritual significance. This beautiful collection is tastefully complemented with authentic furnishings among which are antique Japanese lamps.

Data

• Surface: 600 mq c.a.
• Materials: exposed concrete, natural Barge stone, steel, glass.
• Slate tables (outdoor) - Wooden tables (indoor)
• Pots room: antique Chinese and Japanese pots.
  Eras: Qing (1644-1735) / Tokugawa (1615-1868), Meiji (1868-1912)
• Tokonoma: the traditional display niche of the refined Japanese house.