National Archaeology Museum

The National Museum of Archaeology, formally known as the National Museum of Archaeology of Doctor Leite de Vasconcelos, is the largest archaeological museum in Portugal and a major institution dedicated to ancient art in the Iberian Peninsula. Located in the Belem district of Lisbon, it was founded in 1893 by the archaeologist Jose Leite de Vasconcelos. The museum serves as the most important center for archaeological research in Portugal and has received the international Genio Protector da Colonia Augusta Emerita prize from the Foundation for Roman Studies and the Friends of the National Museum of Roman Art in Merida, Spain.

The museum originated from the efforts of Jose Leite de Vasconcelos to create an institution dedicated to the history of the Portuguese people. With the support of politician Bernardino Machado, a legal decree established the National Ethnographic Museum on 20 December 1893. Its initial collection combined the founder's private holdings with those of Estacio da Veiga, and many artworks were subsequently transferred from the National Museum of Ancient Art. Following the proclamation of the republic in 1910, the collection expanded with significant properties from the royal house. The museum has conducted its own archaeological excavations since its early years and has published its scientific activities in the journal O Arqueologo Portugues since 1895.

The museum's archive encompasses items from over 3,200 archaeological sites, covering over 500,000 years of the Iberian Peninsula's history. The collection has grown through donations to the state, incorporations from other museums, and the museum's own extensive fieldwork. Its permanent holdings are divided into two main departments: finds from Egypt and finds from Portugal. The Portuguese section emphasizes Bronze Age artifacts and features a significant collection of Roman mosaics from southern Portugal. The institution also maintains the most important archaeological library in Portugal, and its archive is available for consultation via MatrizNet.

The museum's Treasures exhibition room contains over 1,000 items of gold jewelry from prehistory to ancient history, including the treasures of Herdade do Alamo and Baiao, the Arrecadas from Pacos de Ferreira, and the torc of Vilas-Boas. Its metalwork collection features Chalcolithic copper tools, the oldest iron tools found in Portugal from Alentejo tombs, Atlantic bronzes, and Roman farming implements. The institution holds the largest collection of classical sculpture in Portugal, including toga-draped statues from Mertola, an Apollo from Herdade do Alamo, sarcophagi from Troia and Castanheira do Ribatejo, and the largest collection of Gallecian sculpture in the Iberian Peninsula, with monumental granite statues known as Gallecian Warriors guarding the entrance. Its Roman mosaics, primarily from the 3rd century and depicting themes like Odysseus and Hercules, derive from villas such as Torre da Palma and Milreu. The epigraphy collection, rooted in Vasconcelos's expertise, includes funerary, votive, and honorific Latin inscriptions, notably from the Sanctuary of Sao Miguel da Mota dedicated to the deity Endovelicus. The numismatic archive holds over 30,000 Roman coins, including early Lusitanian pieces. Additionally, the museum houses over 500 Egyptian artifacts acquired by Vasconcelos and later expanded with the collections of Queen Marie Amelie of Orleans and the Palmela family, as well as organic materials such as Roman mine ropes, mummified remains, and leather goods stored in specialized conservation facilities.

Since 1903, the museum has been housed in the western wing of the Jeronimos Monastery in Belem, occupying the space of the former monks' dormitory. The monastery is a UNESCO World Heritage site, recognized officially in 1983, and is one of Portugal's most significant architectural landmarks. The museum building itself was constructed in the Neo-Manueline style and was officially opened in 1906. The entrance is located at the west portal, and the museum flows into the Maritime Museum at the western end, forming part of a 300-meter-long building complex.

The museum is located in the Belem district of Lisbon, Portugal. Its official website is managed by the Portuguese museum institute at http://www.museunacionalarqueologia.gov.pt/. As the primary center for archaeological research in the country, it continues to support ongoing excavations and specialized exhibitions accompanied by scientific publications.