Museum sights in Ecuador
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Museo del Banco Central
On the south side of Parque Central, a republican-era building houses the Museo del Banco Central and its small exhibit of local archaeology, ethnography and art.
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Museo Remigio Crespo Toral
Inside one of Calle Larga's historical buildings, the Museo Remigio Crespo Toral contains religious sculptures, colonial furniture, paintings and a fine selection of indigenous artifacts.
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Museo del Banco Central
The Museo del Banco Central reopened in its new location in 2009, and showcases valuable artifacts from pre-Columbian Manta culture, as well as quirky fishing memorabilia.
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Museo Naval
The little-visited Museo Naval, entered through the door on the Malecón side, has four large galleries with maps, documents, models and other curio of the seafaring history of the country.
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Instituto Otavaleño de Antropología
The Instituto Otavaleño de Antropología is packed with ancient artifacts from the region. It’s located inside the University of Otavalo, one block north of Sucre and Panamericana.
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Museo Nahim Isaias
A few blocks away in the Plaza de Administración building is the Museo Nahim Isaias, which exhibits an excellent collection of sculptures, paintings and artifacts of the colonial period.
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Museo de San Agustín
In the convent of the Monastery of San Agustín, the Museo de San Agustín houses many canvases of the Quito School, including a series depicting the life of Saint Augustine, painted by Miguel de Santiago.
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Museo de las Culturas Aborígenes
Along Calle Larga, the labyrinthine Museo de las Culturas Aborígenes has more than 5000 archaeological pieces representing more than 20 pre-Hispanic Ecuadorian cultures going back some 15,000 years.
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Centro Interaméricano de Artes Populares
Just down the stairs on the riverbank, the Centro Interaméricano de Artes Populares exhibits traditional indigenous costumes, handicrafts and artwork from around Latin America and has a classy, well-priced crafts store.
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Centro Cultural Esmeraldas
The Centro Cultural Esmeraldas houses a museum, a library and a bookstore. Material ranges from recent local history to fine ceramics and gold work from the ancient Tolita culture. Some exhibit signs and documentary videos are in English, and the staff is very obliging.
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Museo de Ciencias Naturales
To further acquaint yourself with Ecuador’s flora and fauna, head to the curious natural-history museum, the Museo de Ciencias Naturales. Contemplating the thousands of dead insects and arachnids on display is a good way to rile your nerves before a trip to the Oriente.
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Museo Amazónico
Above Abya Yala bookstore, the Museo Amazónico is run by the Salesian Mission and houses an impressive display of indigenous artifacts collected by the missionaries in the Oriente. It’s not huge, but it’s an interesting exhibit, especially if you plan to head to the jungle.
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Museo Camilo Egas
Several blocks east of Plaza Grande, inside a beautifully restored colonial home, the Museo Camilo Egas houses a small but iconic collection of painter Camilo Egas’ work. Egas was Ecuador’s first indigenista (indigenous movement) painter, and his paintings of indigenous people – idealistic as they are – are stunning.
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Museo de la Ciudad
On one side, the Museo de la Ciudad occupies the beautifully restored San Juan de Dios hospital (built in 1563, it functioned as a hospital until 1973). The museum depicts Quito’s daily life through the centuries, with displays including dioramas, model indigenous homes and colonial kitchens. Guides are available in Spanish, English, French or German ($4).
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Museo del Banco Central
One of the country’s most important museums, the Museo del Banco Central is located across from Parque El Ejido. This circular, glass-plated, landmark building also houses a movie theater and an auditorium. It showcases the country’s largest collection of Ecuadorian art, from beautifully displayed pre-Hispanic and colonial religious art to 20th-century paintings and sculpture.
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Museo de Jacinto Jijón y Caamaño
The Museo de Jacinto Jijón y Caamaño houses an interesting private archaeology collection and an exhibit of colonial art featuring some of the masters of the Quito School. This museum is on the 3rd floor of the library in the Universidad Católica, across the traffic circle from the Casa de la Cultura Ecuatoriana. Admission includes a guided tour (in English if you call in advance).
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Parque La Carolina
North of the Mariscal lies the giant Parque La Carolina. On weekends it fills with families who come to pedal paddleboats, play soccer and ride bikes. The park's Jardín Botánico has more than 300 Ecuadorian plants and tree species and an outstanding orquideario (orchid greenhouse) - it's well worth a look. The Museo de Ciencias Naturales, the country's best natural history museum, is next door.
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Museo Antropológico y Arte Contemporáneo
The modern Museo Antropológico y Arte Contemporáneo houses anthropological and archeological exhibits as well as a superb collection of contemporary Ecuadorian art. MAAC also has a modern 400-seat theater for plays, concerts and film. Behind the museum is an open-air stage, where musical and theatrical performances are occasionally given. If you're peckish at interval, there's a food court next door.
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Church Museum
Above the Basilica de Nuestra Señora de Agua Santa is a little museum with an eclectic, if somewhat haphazardly thrown together, collection of poorly kept taxidermic animals, religious paintings, church vestments and local handicrafts. A significant portion of the display contains donations by pilgrims to Nuestra Señora de Agua Santa, the local icon, including military attire and a surprisingly sizable collection of toy trucks.
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Parque Histórico Guayaquil
Historic Williamsburg meets the zoo at this large park across the Guayaquil-Durán bridge. It's divided into three zones: the Endangered Wildlife Zone, which has 45 species of birds, animals and reptiles; the Urban Architecture Zone, which has a restaurant and showcases the development of early 20th-century architecture in Guayaquil; and the Traditions Zone, which focuses on local traditions with an emphasis on customs, crafts and agriculture.
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Museo de las Conceptas
This religious museum in the Convent of the Immaculate Conception, founded in 1599, offers a glimpse into centuries-old customs of the cloistered nuns who live here. You can’t actually see the nuns – they’re cloistered, after all – but you can see their primitive bread-making equipment and dioramas of their stark cells, as well as some important religious art. Strangely enough, this old-fashioned nunnery has wi-fi (but only for visitors!).
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Museo de Arte Colonial
One block to the northeast of Plaza Grande is the excellent Museo de Arte Colonial. In a restored 17th-century building, the museum houses what many consider to be Ecuador’s best collection of colonial art. On display are famous sculptures and paintings of the Quito School including the works of Miguel de Santiago, Manuel Chili (the indigenous artist known as Caspicara) and Bernardo de Legarda. The museum was closed indefinitely for restoration at time of research.
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Museo Municipal
A block south of Parque Bolívar, you find the Museo Municipal and the municipal library. The archaeology room on the ground floor has mainly Inca and pre-Inca ceramics, and several figurines from the oldest culture in Ecuador, the Valdivia (c 3200 BC). Also on the ground floor is a colonial room with mainly religious paintings and a few period household items. Upstairs, there is a jumble of modern art and ethnography rooms with regional costumes, handicrafts and several shrunken heads.
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Capilla del Hombre
A few blocks away from the Museo Guayasamín stands one of the most important works of art in South America, Guayasamín’s Capilla del Hombre. The fruit of Guayasamín’s greatest vision, this giant monument-cum-museum is a tribute to humankind, to the suffering of Latin America’s indigenous poor and to the undying hope for something better. It’s a moving place and the tours (in English, French and Spanish, included in the price) are highly recommended. They usually leave upon request during opening hours.
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Museo Franciscano
The Museo Franciscano contains some of the church’s finest artwork including paintings, sculpture and 16th-century furniture. Some of the furniture is fantastically wrought and inlaid with thousands of pieces of mother-of-pearl. The admission fee includes a guided tour in English or Spanish. Good guides will point out mudejar (Moorish) representations of the eight planets revolving around the sun in the ceiling, and will explain how the light shines through the rear window during the solstices, lighting up the main altar. They’ll also demonstrate an odd confessional technique, where two people standing in separate corners can hear each other while whispering into the…
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