Museo de la Ciudad de Antequera

About the museum

The museum's remote origin lies in the Arco de los Gigantes, erected in 1585 and regarded as the first public archaeological museum in Spain, which gathered an epigraphic and sculptural collection from the Roman period. In 1908, by decision of the town council and on the proposal of the archaeologist Rodrigo Amador de los Ríos, the Museo Arqueológico Municipal was founded in a lower gallery of the Palacio Municipal, where a collection of historical pieces, mainly Roman, was gathered over more than fifty years.

In 1966 the Museo Municipal de Antequera was created and moved to the Palacio de Nájera, which had to be restored; the works extended into the early seventies. The then Prince and Princess of Spain, Don Juan Carlos and Doña Sofía, officially opened it on 15 March 1972.

Between 2009 and 2011 the old palace was restored and two new annexe buildings were constructed. Since its reopening the centre has been called the Museo de la Ciudad de Antequera. The complex totals some five thousand square metres of built area, half of which are exhibition rooms. It displays everything from prehistory to the present day, with archaeology, sculpture, silverware, textiles and painting, as well as works by contemporary artists such as José María Fernández, Cristóbal Toral and Jesús Martínez Labrador.

Highlights

• Efebo de Antequera, a Roman bronze from the 1st century AD
• Mausoleum of Acilia Plecusa and Roman mosaics from the area
• San Francisco by Pedro de Mena
• Rooms dedicated to José María Fernández, Jesús Martínez Labrador and Cristóbal Toral
• Colección Delgado in the museum's gallery
• Palacio de Nájera with its cloistered courtyard

Permanent exhibitions

• Colección permanente: salas de arqueología (prehistoria, Roma, paleocristiano y al-Ándalus) – A journey through Antequera's history from prehistory, with Roman epigraphy and mosaics, the mausoleum of Acilia Plecusa, the Roman tomb and the Efebo de Antequera.
• Sala IX: el San Francisco de Pedro de Mena – Room dedicated to the sculpture of San Francisco by Pedro de Mena, within the route through Baroque art, silverware and textiles.
• Salas de artistas contemporáneos – Rooms with works by José María Fernández (oil and pastel), Jesús Martínez Labrador (sculpture and drawing) and Cristóbal Toral, as well as the Colección Delgado.

Founded

1972

Operated by

Ayuntamiento de Antequera

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission to the museum is free; guided visits with a host and the audio guide are charged.

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 is in the Palacio de Nájera, on the Plaza del Coso Viejo, in the centre of Antequera.

Amenities & dining

Museum shop (information by phone on +34 952 708 300).

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit