Front of Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya

©Esme Fox/Lonely Planet

Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya

Barcelona


Occupying the 1929 World Exhibition's Graphic Arts Palace, this intriguing archaeology museum covers both Catalonia and cultures from across Spain. There’s good material on the Balearic Islands (including 5th- to 3rd-century BCE statues of Phoenician goddess Tanit from Ibiza) and the Greek and Roman city of Empúries (Emporion), as well as the region's prehistoric inhabitants. Don't miss the 53,200-year-old human jaw found near Sitges, or the beautiful Roman mosaic depicting Les Tres Gràcies (The Three Graces), unearthed in the 18th century.

Other notable items range from copies of pre-Neanderthal skulls to jewel-studded Visigothic crosses. The Roman finds upstairs were mostly dug up in and around Barcelona, including fine mosaics like the one of Bellerophon and the Chimera.

Transportation

  • metro: Poble Sec
  • bus: 55

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