Rome’s Caravaggio 2025 blockbuster exhibition concluded at Palazzo Barberini, clocking up a record 450,000 visitors from around the world.

The exhibition, which attracted an average of more than 3,000 daily admissions, also drew over 8,000 visitors to the Casino Ludovisi, which had been specially opened to allow visitors to view Caravaggio’s only ceiling mural.

Considered one of the most successful projects in the history of Palazzo Barberini’s exhibitions and a highlight of the 2025 Jubilee, the exhibition presented Caravaggio works from prestigious international, national and private collections.

Curated by Francesca Cappelletti, Maria Cristina Terzaghi, and Thomas Clement Salomon, the show opened on March 6 and ran until July 20, extended from the originally scheduled end date of July 6, staying open until midnight to meet demand.

“This exhibition, the result of enormous work, has placed the National Galleries of Ancient Art and Palazzo Barberini at the centre of international cultural debate for the first time,” commented Thomas Clement Salomon, director of the National Galleries of Ancient Art.

Such was the interest in the exhibition that 60,000 pre-sale tickets were sold before the show even opened, with organisers stretching opening hours as tickets began to sell out.

 As the Caravaggio paintings on loan return to their collections, one masterpiece – the Conversion of Saul – will stay on display at Palazzo Barberini until 30 September.