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.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Barcelona attractions

1. Museu Etnològic

0.12 MILES

Delving into Catalonia's rich heritage, Barcelona’s ethnology museum presents an intriguing permanent display from its 70,000-object collection, with…

2. Jardins de Laribal

0.16 MILES

Opened in 1922, these soothing terraced gardens just west of the Fundació Joan Miró are linked by paths, stairs and wisteria-clad walkways, with pretty…

3. Fundació Joan Miró

0.16 MILES

Joan Miró was a Catalan painter and sculptor born in Barcelona who combined abstract art with surrealism. He is considered one of the most influential…

4. Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya

0.24 MILES

The spectacular neobaroque silhouette of the Palau Nacional can be seen on Montjuïc's slopes from across the city. Built for the 1929 World Exhibition and…

5. Mirador del Palau Nacional

0.24 MILES

Even if you don't visit the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, you should at least admire the view from the plaza out the front. There's a terrace cafe,…

6. Museu Olímpic i de l'Esport

0.26 MILES

At this information-packed interactive sporting museum, you wander down a ramp that snakes below ground level and is lined with multimedia displays on the…

7. Jardins de Joan Maragall

0.27 MILES

Behind the impossible-to-miss Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, the lovely but little-visited Jardins de Joan Maragall's lush lawns, ornamental fountains…

8. Telefèric de Montjuïc

0.3 MILES

From the Parc Montjuïc cable car station on northern Montjuïc, these glass cabins zip you up to the Castell de Montjuïc via the mirador (lookout point),…