The National Museum of Archaeology (Spanish: Museo Nacional de Arqueología) of Spain (officially known as National Archaeological Museum before 2009)[1] is in Madrid, beside the Plaza de Colón (Columbus Square), sharing its building with the National Library.
The museum was founded in 1867 by a Royal Decree of Isabella II, and its purpose was to be a depository for numismatic, archaeological, ethnographical and decorative art collections compiled by the Spanish monarchs.
In 1895 all the collections were moved to the current venue, a neoclassical building projected by architect Francisco Jareño and built from 1866 to 1892. In 1968 were started renovation and extension works that considerably increased its area.
In 2008/2009 the museum was being remodelled with only the highlights from the collection being shown to the public. It is reported that the remodelled museum will concentrate on a core role and will release items from the decorative arts collection.
The current collection includes, among others, Pre-historic, Celtic, Iberian, Greek and Roman antiquities and medieval (Visigothic, Muslim and Christian) objects.
Highlights include:
- a replica of the Altamira cave
- Lady of Elx
- Lady of Baza
- Biche of Balazote
- Treasure of Guarrazar
Notes
- ^ Article (May 26, 2009) in ABC newspaper (Spanish) mentioning the new official name.
External links
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Coordinates: 40°25′24″N 3°41′20″W / 40.42333°N 3.68889°W
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