Axel Munthe

Swedish physician and writer Axel Munthe (1857 -1949) bought the ruins of a 15th century church on land above Anacapri. He spent much of his life building and furnishing the villa San Michele, and laying out the surrounding gardens on the site.

When Munthe began excavating, he found ancient marble columns and mosaics lying buried beneath the soil. He discovered the church in turn had been built on top of the ruins of one of Emperor Tiberius’ villas.

Munthe added Tiberius’ marble column fragments and statues he found on the site, to the collection of Roman, Etruscan, and Egyptian artefacts he accumulated during his years of travel.