The museum was originated in the 19th century as a private collection of Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli (1822–1879)[1] and his mother, Rosa Trivulzio, of the family of the condottiero Gian Giacomo Trivulzio. Many of the rooms in the palace were redecorated starting in 1846, a commissions entrusted to Luigi Scrosati and Giuseppe Bertini.