The Chapter Museum of Atri was founded in 1912 by Monsignor Raffaele vats and was enriched in time by generous donations (like that of ceramics from family Bindi). Collects works ranging from the 13th to the 20th century coming from the city. The museum is hosted in the rooms on the upper floor of the Benedictine cloister of a monastery of the XII century, became in XV century residence of the canons of the cathedral and the episcopal cemetery. Includes ten rooms in addition to the cloister and the crypt.
Inside two big reliquaries Franciscans of the XVII sec. in wood, with relics that came from the Roman catacombs; three wooden portaceri XVI century of good workmanship; along the stairs a descent of the Holy Spirit the end of the XVI century and a series of six candlesticks and cross in gilded wood with Christ in silver.
The rooms 1 and 2 are dedicated to the mobile from the sacristy, 3 to the textile art sacred. Planets, stoles, chasubles, mitrie baroque and rococo (XVII and XVIII centuries) in silk, velvet, brocades and Damascus with filature in silver and gold. Note that the red carpet embroidered in silver donated in 1732 to Cardinal Troiano Acquaviva by the queen of England.
In Room 4 is located the Pinacoteca, in 5 an angel and the Virgin Annunciate, oils on canvas of a Neapolitan painter. The room 6 is always dedicated to the Pinacoteca. In Hall 7, at the center in modular showcases, by the particular shape of a hut, are exposed 100 pieces from the collection Vincenzo Bindi constituted by plates, tiles, floor tiles, vases, etc. mainly of castles, but also of other schools, representing almost the entire history of the ceramics of Abruzzo, the beginning of the XVI century XIX. There are its majolica bricks that come from the ceiling S. Donated in castles, works of Grue (Francis, Carlantonio, Francesco Antonio Xavier, Anastasio, Liborio, Francis Xavier and Niccolò Thomas), the Gentiles (Carmine, Giacomo and Berardino). Do not miss the Cappelletti: Nicola (1691-1767) and Faithful (1874-1920), Gernaldo Fuina and many other ceramics of authors do not determined and other latest constituting the so-called lean ceramic. In the middle, solitary, Madonna with Child majolica bicolor, glazed attributed to Luca della Robbia and runs toward the 1470. At the bottom of two large pots polychrome Francis Xavier Grue (1720-1755) representing the “Nativity” and “The Adoration of the Magi” determined and other latest constituting the so-called lean ceramic. In the middle, solitary, Madonna with Child majolica bicolor, glazed attributed to Luca della Robbia and runs toward the 1470.
In room 8, in two cases, a reliquary cross silver embossed, engraved, gold, with enamels and niello of 1435 and the wonderful cross in rock crystal, a work of the Venetian school of the end of the XIII century, coming from the church S. Francis in Atri: a piece between the most prestigious of the Museum. Room 9 contains works of the early twentieth century, carved by atriano Thomas Illuminated, brother of the famous humanist professor Luigi Illuminated, born in Atri in 1883 and that he accomplished his artistic maturation under the Ferrari and the Bazzani in Rome. There you notice pieces of wood, bronze and terracotta depicting flowers, holy figures and heads of characters.