National Museum Machado de Castro

Category: Civil Architecture > Museum

District: Coimbra > Coimbra > Coimbra > Alta

Location

The National Museum of Machado de Castro is located in the upper part of the city of Coimbra, a place with a profound history dating back to Roman times. It occupies the space of the former Episcopal Palace, right in the heart of the area classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, integrated into the University of Coimbra, Alta and Sofia complex.

Its elevated position on the hill offers a unique perspective on the city's historical and urban surroundings, being part of an environment of great cultural and symbolic value that has been, throughout the centuries, an administrative, religious, and cultural center.

A Journey Through Time

Visiting this museum is also an opportunity to explore the different layers of local history. The building rests upon notable structures of the Roman city of Aeminium, including a vast cryptoporticus built in the 1st century to support the Roman forum and its buildings. This monumental underground construction is, in itself, a point of great interest.

Upon these Roman foundations, a Christian temple, an episcopal palace from the 12th century onwards, and, in the 20th century, the museum we know today, were successively erected. This superposition of eras and functions makes the building a living testament to the city's evolution and its history.

The Rich Collection

The museum's collection is vast and diverse, featuring thousands of pieces that span centuries of art history. Predominantly, the collections come from convents, monasteries, and churches in the Coimbra region, reflecting the cultural richness and artistic patronage that flourished in these institutions over time.

The collection includes important nuclei of archaeology, sculpture, painting, and decorative arts, such as goldsmithing, ceramics, and textiles. These collections offer an overview of Portuguese and imported artistic production, from the Middle Ages to the 18th century, with some later works.

The Importance of Sculpture

Sculpture constitutes one of the museum's strengths and most recognized aspects, partly justifying its naming in honor of the sculptor Machado de Castro. The collection covers an extensive period, from the 11th to the 18th century, with special emphasis on Portuguese production.

Here we find a vast collection of works in stone, terracotta, and wood, many of them from the workshops that made Coimbra a reference sculptural center in the country. Notable pieces of great mastery and significance, many with religious themes, illustrate the evolution of artistic styles in Portuguese sculpture.

License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.pt