Museu Municipal Santos Rocha

About the museum

The Museu Municipal Santos Rocha was founded in 1894 by the native of Figueira, António dos Santos Rocha (1853–1910). First housed temporarily in the Casa do Paço, it moved in 1899 to the Paços do Concelho (town hall) building, where it stayed until 1975. Until around 1910 it enjoyed a golden age, with international recognition thanks to the work of its founder, the Sociedade Arqueológica da Figueira da Foz and the museum's Boletim (bulletin).

Since 1975 it has occupied its present building, constructed with the technical and financial support of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and designed by the architect Isaías Cardoso, also from Figueira. The same building houses the Biblioteca Pública Municipal and the Auditório Madalena Biscaia de Azeredo Perdigão, and it was conceived as a cultural centre for a growing town.

The museum has permanent exhibitions of archaeology, epigraphy, ethnography, numismatics, arms and armour, Indo-Portuguese furniture, religious art, and modern and contemporary art, as well as two rooms for temporary exhibitions. The visitable reserves recall the 19th-century museum and hold ethnographic collections from Portugal, Africa, Timor, Brazil, China and Japan. The museum also has a documentation centre and the decentralised units Mar (Sea), Sal (Salt) and Molinológico (Mills).

Highlights

• Permanent exhibitions of archaeology and epigraphy
• Ethnography from Portugal, Africa, Timor, Brazil, China and Japan in the visitable reserves
• Numismatics and arms and armour
• Indo-Portuguese furniture and religious art
• Modern and contemporary art (painting and sculpture)

Permanent exhibitions

• Arqueologia e Epigrafia – Permanent exhibition of archaeological finds and inscriptions from the Figueira region, the collection on which the museum was founded.
• Etnografia, numismática e armaria – Collections of ethnography, coins and weapons displayed in the permanent rooms; the visitable reserves show ethnography from Portugal, Africa, Timor, Brazil, China and Japan.
• Mobiliário indo-português, arte religiosa e arte moderna e contemporânea – Permanent exhibitions of furniture, religious art, and painting and sculpture from the 20th and 21st centuries.

Founded

1894

Operated by

Município da Figueira da Foz

Admission & discounts

Admission to the temporary exhibitions is free. Free admission also applies to school groups on study visits, holders of the municipal senior card or volunteer scholarship card, members of APOM and ICOM, staff of the Instituto Português de Museus and municipal employees.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit