Il Lascito Spinola, eredità di un cardinale.

Giovanni Battista Spinola III (1681-1752) was a modest and rich Genoese cardinal, with an inheritance about 100.000 Roman old coins (scudi). He strongly believes in donation, so he trusted and supported different organization of charity for poor people. In fact in his testament of 1744 and 1752 he wanted to sell all his property - include a Roman art gallery of 348 paintings now missing - to leave the income to the Magistrato of Misericordia in Genoa for poor people. This important donation was called “Lascito Spinola” and it was used for 980 poor people with 1.000 sum of money, from 200 and 400 Genoese old coin (lire) until 1898. Three other important donation - 10.000 scudi to the Propaganda Fide, the same amount to the Congregazione della Pietà in Rome and the foundation in 1749 of the Casa della Missione in Subiaco, also 12.000 scudi post mortem for this religious institution – help us to explore this religious figure and his collection.