[1][2] The museum opened on December 5, 2008, with the merger of the Asian collection of the Turin City Museum of Ancient Art at the Palazzo Madama and contributions from Turin City Hall, the Region of Piedmont, the Fondazione Giovanni Agnelli and Compagnia di San Paolo.

Architect Andrea Bruno oversaw the restoration of the Palazzo Mazzonis to house the newly formed museum.

The Himalayan gallery is located on the third floor and dedicated to Buddhist art from Bhutan, Nepal, and Tibet.

The fourth floor houses collections from Islamic countries, including Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and the Arabian Peninsula (mainly bronzes, ceramics, and tiles).

In addition to these collections, which consist of about 2,300 works, there are more than 1,400 archeological finds that date back to the pre-Islamic period from the Iraqi excavations of Seleucia and Coche.