As expected in a great European capital, Lisbon has a wealth of excellent
museums, from the world-class
Calouste
Gulbenkian Museum to the outstanding
Ancient
Art Museum, and the more recent and acclaimed Design and Fashion Museum.
There are dozens of public and private collections, many housed in former
palaces and convents that would be worth a visit even without their museum
displays. That's the case of the Tile
Museum and the Decorative
Arts Museum, where visitors end up spending much more time than they
anticipate.
Other museums have some of the world's most valuable collections of their
kind, like the Coaches
Museum and the Maritime
Museum in the Belem district, also home to the Archaeology
Museum and the lavish collection inside Ajuda
Palace.
For contemporary Portuguese art there's the Chiado
Museum and the Arpad
Szenes - Vieira da Silva Museum, both featuring works by the country's
most prominent artists.
Also look for the Berardo Museum, with its jaw-dropping collection of modern art by the great international
artists (from Warhol to Picasso) and the neighboring MAAT - Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology.
Spaces particularly linked to the city of Lisbon are the Lisbon
Museum, the Fado
Museum, and the award-winning Water
Museum.
There are also two extraordinary private art collections that are often
overlooked but worthy of a visit for admirers of decorative arts, the Anastácio
Gonçalves Museum, and the Medeiros
e Almeida Museum.
Several churches are also home to small but noteworthy collections, like
Carmo
Church's eclectic archaeological museum, São Roque
Church's rich sacred art collection, and Saint
Anthony Church's exhibits about the life of the revered saint that was
born on the site -- all of them reminding you that Lisbon itself is a
museum-piece of history, ruins and treasures.
The Lisboa Card gives free access or reduced
admission to most museums.
1. Calouste
Gulbenkian Museum - Treasures from the East and the West.
2. Berardo Museum - World-class collection
of modern art.
3. Ancient
Art Museum - Fascinating Oriental and European art.
4. MAAT - Exhibitions of contemporary art, architecture and technology, in an iconic modern building that's also a work of art.
5. MuDe - Design and Fashion Museum - One of the world's leading design and fashion collections.
6. The Tile
Museum - An ancient art form in a lavish old convent.
7. Coaches
Museum - The world's largest collection of magnificent royal coaches.
8. Maritime
Museum - The story of Portugal's pioneering role in world exploration.
9. Orient Museum -
Lisbon in Asia. Asia in Lisbon.
10. Chiado
Museum - Portuguese contemporary art.
Archaeology
Museum - Archaeological finds from over the centuries.
The Lisbon
Museum - The story of Lisbon's long history.
Decorative
Arts Museum - A captivating decorative arts collection.
Anastácio
Gonçalves Museum - A phenomenal personal decorative arts collection.
Arpad
Szenes - Vieira da Silva Museum - The gallery of two great 20th-century artists.
Interactive
Science Museum - Scientific exhibits with cutting-edge technology.
Carmo
Church's Archeological Museum - Fascinating archaeological finds.
São
Roque Church's Sacred Art Museum - Ecclesiastical treasures.
The
Aqueduct and Mãe de Agua Water Museum - An indestructible feat of engineering.
Saint
Anthony Church and Museum - Saint Anthony's life story in his birthplace.
Fado
Museum - The story of the national music.
Military
Museum - A testament to the country's battles.
The
Roman Theater and Museum - Archaeological finds of an ancient Roman theater.
Marionette
Museum - Lovely collection of puppets from around the world.
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