Centro de Interpretación del León Romano

About the museum

The Centro de Interpretación del León Romano occupies the Casona de Puerta Castillo, beside the only gate of the city walls still standing; the present arch is an 18th-century reconstruction. The casona is an 18th-century León bourgeois building that functioned as a foundling home linked to the Cathedral Chapter; the second floor was built in the last decade of that century. It later passed into private hands and was the home and workshop of the sculptor Víctor de los Ríos Campos. A fire in the early seventies made it necessary to reinforce and rebuild the interior, and the building now belongs to León town council.

The permanent exhibition covers the Roman period of the city. Its rooms deal with the Roman army, the wars against the Astures and Cantabrians and the later Romanisation, with finds from the archaeological excavations in León, and with the legions VI Victrix and VII Gemina, the two that were stationed in the city. A recreated space shows how legionaries lived in their contubernium, and the last room is devoted to the permanent camp of Legio VII Gemina, built at the end of the 1st century AD, and to the civilian settlement that grew up around it. Reproductions of Roman inscriptions are also displayed; their originals are kept in the León Museum and in the museum of the Real Colegiata de San Isidoro.

Highlights

• Rooms on the Roman army and the Asturian and Cantabrian wars
• Legio VI Victrix and Legio VII Gemina in León
• Recreation of the contubernium, the living space of the legionaries
• Finds from the camp and the Roman civilian settlement
• Casona beside the only surviving gate of the city wall
• Free admission

Permanent exhibition

• Exposición permanente sobre el León romano – Rooms on the Roman army, the wars against the Astures and Cantabrians, archaeological finds from León, the legions VI Victrix and VII Gemina, the life of the legionaries and the permanent camp of Legio VII Gemina.

Operated by

Ayuntamiento de León

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Free admission.

Accessibility

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Kids & families

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Getting there & parking

The centre is in the Casona de Puerta Castillo, on the Plaza de la Puerta del Castillo in León’s old town. Guided tours of Roman León start from this centre.

Amenities & dining

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Events & venue rental

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