Raffaele Paparella Treccia was an eminent surgeon and scientist. For 40 years he travelled the world to collect the ancient ceramic artworks of Castelli, a small village in the province of Teramo, that has been renowned over the centuries for its ceramic production. Paparella Treccia donated his collection to a foundation, launched in 1997, named after him and his wife, Margaret Devlet. The precious artefacts are now on display in the 19th century Villa Urania, in the heart of Pescara.

On display are 151 selected masterpieces of Castelli ceramic art, the work of the great Castelli masters active between the 16th and 19th centuries, including Francesco Grue, his son Carlo Antonio Grue, his grandson Francesco Antonio Saverio and others such as Carmine Gentili, Candeloro Cappelletti and Gesualdo Fuina. The pieces document the transition from an extreme simplicity of the elements (16th century), until the Baroque style, and finally the Neoclassical and Rococo style (18th and 19th centuries).