Cagliari's principal gallery showcases a prized collection of 15th- to 17th-century art. Many of the best works are retablos (grand altarpieces), painted by Catalan and Genoese artists. Of those by known Sardinian painters, the four 16th-century works by Pietro Cavaro, father of the so-called Stampace school and arguably Sardinia’s most important artist, are outstanding. They include a moving Deposizione (Deposition) and portraits of St Peter, St Paul and St Augustine.
Also represented is the painter’s father, Lorenzo, and his son Michele. Another Sardinian artist of note is Francesco Pinna, whose 17th-century Pala di Sant’Orsola hangs here. These images tend to show the influence of Spain and Italy, rather than illuminating the Sardinian condition. However, there is a brief line-up of 19th- and early-20th-century Sardinian painters, such as Giovanni Marghinotti and Giuseppe Sciuti.
