The Museum of Music in Bologna launched a show on Friday, July 10. It displays 37 photographs from Queen’s 1986 Magic Tour, the last with the band’s original members: Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon. Visitors can experience it until Oct. 11, 2026.

Photographer Torleif Svensson took these shots while trailing the A Kind of Magic tour across all 26 dates. For years, the images sat tucked away in his private collection. Then, someone found them again between 2019 and 2021.

The Magic Tour kicked off in 1986. It came after the band played Live Aid on July 13, 1985, at Wembley Stadium in London. The final concert happened on Aug. 9, 1986, at Knebworth Park near Stevenage. More than 120,000 people showed up that day. Queen flew in on a helicopter painted with artwork from A Kind of Magic.

“These photographs document Queen’s final great journey,” Pascal Casadei van Raamsdonk, who put together the show, said according to Finestre sull’Arte. “The items on display reveal their most intimate and human side: the stories, the people, and the memory that lives on through those who cherish it.”

Svensson got backstage passes and roamed freely. He snapped pictures during concerts and in quiet moments when the band wasn’t performing. His work captures the shows, the bond between Queen and their fans, and Mercury’s electric command of the stage.

The show contains more than just pictures. Roger Taylor’s drum cymbal sits on display, with his drumsticks right beside it. An official copy of the Red Special guitar, built by Brian May Guitars and signed by May himself, hangs in the collection. Even a sixpence coin Brian May used as a pick during performances made it in.

You’ll also spot the Elektra Records gold record they gave May when “We Are The Champions” sold one million copies. Mercury’s orange Rapax C.B. No. 4 tank top is here, too. He wore it at Musicland Studios in Munich while recording “One Vision.”

Bologna singer-songwriter Cesare Cremonini let the museum borrow two pieces from what he owns. Mercury’s shirt from the helicopter landing at Knebworth Park hangs in a case. So does the yellow Champion tank top he wore onstage that same day.

This exhibit marks 40 years since the tour happened. It also arrives as Bologna celebrates 20 years as a UNESCO Creative City of Music. Pascal Casadei van Raamsdonk and Bernardo Lo Sterzo will guide groups through the collection, sharing stories about what’s in the photographs and what each object meant.

Anne Erickson started her radio career shortly after graduating from Michigan State University and has worked on-air in Detroit, Flint, Toledo, Lansing and beyond. As someone who absolutely loves rock, metal and alt music, she instantly fell in love with radio and hasn’t looked back. When she’s not working, Anne makes her own music with her band, Upon Wings, and she also loves cheering on her favorite Detroit and Michigan sports teams, especially Lions and MSU football. Anne is also an award-winning journalist, and her byline has run in a variety of national publications. You can also hear her weekends on WRIF.