Museo de Naturaleza y Arqueología (MUNA)
Santa Cruz de Tenerife museum in the former Civil Hospital, with natural science and Guanche archaeology collections, including mummies.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The MUNA occupies the former Civil Hospital of Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados, a building of 1745 that was remodelled several times: by Manuel de Oraá in 1862, by Manuel de Cámara in 1888 after a serious fire, and by Antonio Pintor Ocete around 1920, who extended it. Its neoclassical façade, crowned by a statue of Charity donated in 1897, was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural, with monument status, in 1983.
The Cabildo de Tenerife created the Insular Museum of Natural Sciences in June 1951, built mainly from the former museum of Anselmo J. Benítez and the Scientific Cabinet of Juan Bethencourt Alfonso. In 1974 it moved to the Civil Hospital, and in 1982 it opened some rooms to the public for the first time. The Archaeological Museum of Tenerife was inaugurated in 1958 with holdings from several municipal and private collections, and in 1993 the Canary Institute of Bioanthropology was founded, dedicated to research on ancient human remains.
The rehabilitation of the building was carried out in phases: a provisional adaptation in 1993 and a first project between 1994 and 1997, followed by a second phase. Until November 2018 the centre was called the Museo de la Naturaleza y el Hombre; since then it has been known as the Museo de Naturaleza y Arqueología (MUNA).
Today it houses two routes, one on natural sciences and one on archaeology, organised around two courtyards. It is known above all for its collection of Guanche culture, with mummies, pottery and rock engravings, and for its collections of botany, entomology and the islands’ vertebrates.
Highlights
- Guanche mummies and the Funerary World room
- Guanche pottery and rock engravings from the Canary Islands
- Piedra Zanata, with Punic-Berber inscriptions
- Collections of botany, invertebrates and vertebrates of the islands
- Room on the origin of the Canary archipelago and the evolution of species
- Former 1745 Civil Hospital with neoclassical façade
Permanent exhibitions
- Ciencias Naturales – Tour of the origin and nature of the Canary archipelago, evolution and speciation, botany, and land invertebrates and vertebrates.
- Arqueología – Tour of the culture, discovery and settlement of the islands, the archaeology of Tenerife and the rock engravings of the Canary Islands.
- Founded
- 1951
- Operated by
- Museos de Tenerife (Cabildo de Tenerife)
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €5 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €3.50Students, pensioners, over-65s, large families and groups of more than 8 visitors |
| Children & teens | freefree up to age 7 · Free admission for under-8s. |
| Seniors | €3.50Pensioners and over-65s. |
| Students & apprentices | €3.50 |
| Groups (9+ people) | €3.50 per personGroups of more than 8 visitors. |
| Families | €3.50Reduced rate for members of large families. |
| Canarian residents (general admission) | €3 |
| Canarian residents (reduced admission) | €2 |
Free admission: Fridays and Saturdays from 16:00 until closing (on public holidays, from 14:00).
Free admission also for ICOM members, teachers, guides accompanying groups or on a scouting visit, and school groups from the Canary Islands.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
Great for kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 7 |
|---|---|
| Family ticket | €3.50 · Reduced rate for members of large families. |
- Family tours & workshops
The museum runs workshops and activities for younger children and families, as well as an educational programme for schools.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Fundación (línea 1 del tranvía)
Tram: line 1, “Fundación” stop. Intercity TITSA buses; the Estación Central de Guaguas is a few minutes’ walk away.
By car
The nearest underground car parks are in Plaza de España, next to the Mercado de Nuestra Señora de África, and on Calle Ramón y Cajal.
The museum is in the centre of Santa Cruz, a few minutes’ walk from Plaza de España.
Get directionsAmenities & 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
| Audio guide | yes (ES, EN, FR, DE, IT, RU) |
|---|---|
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Free audio guide service in six languages (Spanish, English, French, German, Italian and Russian), used on your own mobile phone or tablet. Room sheets in English are available. The Education and Cultural Action department offers workshops for schoolchildren (for example, on Guanche housing or archaeological excavation); contact didacticamuna@museosdetenerife.org, tel. +34 922 844 358. |
