Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya (MAC) | |
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| Established | 1932; 93 years ago (1932) |
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| Location | Barcelona Empúries MAC Girona Olèrdola Ullastret |
| Type | Archaeology museum |
| Visitors | 351,484 all museums (2017)[1] |
| Director | Jusèp Boya Busquet |
| Owner | Generalitat de Catalunya |
| Website | www |
TheArchaeology Museum of Catalonia (Catalan:Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya,MAC) is anarchaeological museum with five venues that exposes the most important archaeological collection ofCatalonia, focusing onprehistoric times andancient history. The museum was originally founded in 1932 by the RepublicanGovernment of Catalonia. The modern institution was created under the Museums of Catalonia Act in 1990 by the Ministry of Culture of the same Government.
The head office is located in the former Palace of Graphic Arts, which was built on theMontjuïc hill for the1929 Barcelona International Exposition. The pavilion was initially to be dismantled once the event was over, but it was conserved and refitted by the architect Josep Gudiol before the museum opened its doors in 1932.[2]
The museum is composed by a group of five museum venues archaeological sites in several places of Catalonia:
Officially, Museu d'Arqueologia de Barcelona i Institut de Prehistòria i Arqueologia. The museum was designed byPelagi Martínez i Patricio, covers an area of 4,000 m2 and is structured into five chronological spaces: prehistory;protohistory, theGreek andPhoenician colonisations; theRoman Empire; and, finally, theVisigoths, marking the start of the medieval period.[2] Some of the main attractions are the Greek statue ofAsclepius from the 3rd century BCE which was discovered in Empúries,[3] the Iberian Treasure ofTivissa and thevotive crown from the Treasure of Torredonjimeno.[4]
The village ofSant Martí d'Empúries is on a small isthmus that has been settled since the 9th century BCE, when it was inhabited byIndigetes.[5] The town itself was built around the 6th century BCE by Greek colonists and was later occupied by the Romans during thePunic Wars.[6] Archaeological recovery of the site began in 1908 and 25% of the site has been excavated. In addition to the outdoor exhibits, many of the artifacts discovered here can be seen in the museum on the site.[5]
Founded in 1846 as the "Provincial Museum of Antiquities and Fine Arts", making it one of the oldest museums in Catalonia.[7] It was relocated on several occasions until it arrived at its current location in the Benedictine monastery ofSant Pere de Galligants in 1857. It became a part of MAC in 1992.
The settlement atOlèrdola was continuously inhabited from the 8th century BCE to the time of theReconquista.[8] The site includes an Iron Age fortified nucleus, an Iberian settlement, a Roman fortification and a medieval town with Romanesque and pre-Romanesque churches and medieval tombs cut into the rock.[9] It was opened to the public in November 1971 and became part of the Archaeology Museum of Catalonia in 1995.
Located in theBaix Empordà, the Iberian town ofUllastret is the largestIberian settlement discovered so far in Catalonia, with a history stretching back to the 5th Century B.C.[10] Excavations started in 1948 and continue to this day. Visitors can walk around the ruined walls and cobbled streets of the village, as well as visit the Ullastret Monographic Museum, which is also part of the complex.[11]
Officially,Centre d'Arqueologia Subaquàtica de Catalunya (CASC) in Girona. Created in 1992 to protect underwater archeological sites and part of MAC since 1996, the centre's mission is to take inventory, protect, conserve, and study underwater heritage sites in Catalonia. In addition to its own projects, CASC provides support for external archeological teams.[12]
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