Museu do ISEP
Museum of the Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto (ISEP) with scientific and teaching instruments showing 175 years of experimental teaching.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The Museu do ISEP was created in 1999 to gather and display the collection of scientific and teaching instruments used in the institute's offices and laboratories, which documents the scientific and technical evolution of experimental teaching since the founding of the Escola Industrial in 1852. The collection works as a time capsule, where the technological advances of past centuries can be appreciated.
The collection covers several fields of engineering: physics, with optical, electrostatic, hydrodynamic, heat and acoustic instruments; electrotechnics, with measuring devices, telegraphs and motors; mining engineering, with mining models, furnaces and mineralogy collections; mechanics, with steam engines; chemistry, with precision balances and laboratory equipment; and civil engineering, with bridge models and hydraulic devices.
The museum also has a library of more than two thousand titles, including the encyclopaedia of Diderot and d'Alembert, a physics work by Pieter van Musschenbroek, books on crystallography and mineralogy by René Haüy and a treatise on architecture by Leon Battista Alberti. An archive holds correspondence, minutes and other documents since the founding of the Escola Industrial do Porto. The education service has existed since 2003, and the museum has belonged to the Portuguese Museum Network since August 2015.
Highlights
- Scientific and teaching instruments of experimental teaching since 1852
- Steam engines, telegraphs, motors and electrical measuring devices
- Mining models, furnaces and mineralogy collection
- Library with Diderot and d'Alembert's encyclopaedia
- Science experiments for schools through the education service
Permanent exhibition
- Exposição permanente de instrumentos científico-didáticos – Route through the evolution of engineering and its teaching over 175 years, with instruments of physics, electrotechnics, mining, mechanics, chemistry and civil engineering.
- Founded
- 1999
- Operated by
- Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto (ISEP), Politécnico do Porto
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
| Adults | free |
|---|
Free admission.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
Great for kids & families
- Family tours & workshops
The education service offers science experiments with simple, easily accessible materials, aimed at pupils in the 1st to 3rd school cycles, in a playful approach; there is no minimum age for visits.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
IPO · 5-min walk
Porto Metro, line D (yellow), IPO station, less than five minutes' walk away; STCP buses 803, 300 and 301, ISEP stop (entrance via Rua de S. Tomé).
By car
No on-site parking at the museum.
The museum has no car park.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
- Museum shop: not available
The museum has no shop.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes · approx. 40 min |
|---|---|
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Groups can book by telephone (+351 228 340 508) or by e-mail, at least two working days in advance. Each group can have at most 20 visitors; the visit lasts about 40 minutes and takes place in Portuguese or English, with no minimum age. |
