Galleria Nazionale di Palazzo Spinola

As you pick your way through crowds, the old centre can appear run-down and shabby, but it's clear that many of the buildings were once - very grand indeed. Palazzo Spinola is one of these elegant palazzi, right in the heart of the maze of lanes. The building dates to 1593, and passed through the hands of some of Genoa's leading aristocratic families. Nowadays it houses an art gallery with paintings, frescoes, ceramics and furniture.