Museo Nacional de Escultura

About the museum

The Museo Nacional de Escultura arose from the disentailment (desamortización) of convent property ordered in 1836, which led to the Provincial Museums of Fine Arts. The one in Valladolid was installed in 1842 in the Colegio de Santa Cruz with about a thousand paintings and two hundred sculptures. In 1879 part of its holdings was separated to form the Provincial Museum of Antiquities, today the Museo de Valladolid.

In 1933, during the Second Republic and at the initiative of Ricardo de Orueta, the museum received national status and its present name, now focused on sculpture. It moved to the Colegio de San Gregorio, with a modern display by Emilio Moya and Constantino Candeira, and received works from the Prado Museum. In 1968 the paintings were moved to the deconsecrated church of La Pasión. In 1982 the Palacio de Villena returned to the Ministry of Culture and was rehabilitated until 1998.

The Colegio de San Gregorio, a late Gothic building founded at the end of the 15th century, reopened in 2009 after a restoration by Nieto and Sobejano that won the National Restoration and Conservation Award. There the historic collection of polychrome sculpture is displayed, mostly of devotional or liturgical use. Since 2011 the Casa del Sol, linked to the church of San Benito el Viejo, has displayed the artistic reproductions of the former National Museum of Artistic Reproductions, which doubled the museum’s holdings from around 3,000 to around 6,000 works. The Palacio de Villena hosts temporary exhibitions, the library, the archive, the workshops and an 18th-century Neapolitan nativity scene.

Highlights

• Spanish polychrome sculpture from the 15th to the 18th century in the Colegio de San Gregorio
• Room devoted to the Mannerism of Alonso Berruguete
• Processional sculpture
• Copies of ancient masterpieces, such as the Laocoön, in the Casa del Sol
• 18th-century Neapolitan nativity scene in the Palacio de Villena
• Façade and courtyard of the Colegio de San Gregorio, a jewel of late Gothic

Permanent exhibitions

• Colección de escultura española (Colegio de San Gregorio) – Polychrome sculpture from the 15th to the 18th century, mostly of devotional or liturgical use, with rooms devoted to Alonso Berruguete, the Renaissance, the Baroque and processional sculpture.
• Reproducciones artísticas (Casa del Sol) – 19th- and 20th-century copies of great works of classical antiquity, such as the Belvedere Torso, the Laocoön and the mask of Agamemnon, from the former National Museum of Artistic Reproductions.
• Belén napolitano (Palacio de Villena) – 18th-century Neapolitan nativity scene displayed in the Palacio de Villena.

Founded

1842

Operated by

Ministerio de Cultura

Director

Alejandro Nuevo Gómez

Admission & discounts

Free admission: Saturdays 16:00–19:30, Sundays 10:00–14:00, 18 April (International Day for Monuments and Sites), 18 May (International Museum Day), 12 October and 6 December.

With an AVE or long-distance Renfe ticket (Museos en Red programme), a 50% discount on the general rate is obtained. In addition to the permanent exhibition, admission gives access to the temporary exhibitions included.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials
• Audio description: no information

The sites largely retain their original structure: the route involves changes of level, going outdoors and passing through narrow doors. For people with reduced mobility there is an alternative route, wheelchairs and adapted toilets, as well as seats and rest areas. A free vehicle for visitors with reduced mobility can be requested in advance at reservas.museoescultura@cultura.gob.es. The lifts have Braille and raised signage. The rooms have portable induction loops for the audio guides and sound amplifiers; the assembly hall has a perimeter induction loop. There is a plan, a leaflet and easy-to-read guides, which can be requested at the ticket office of any of the three sites.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide

Family workshops are organised regularly. The family route “¿Qué tenemos en la cabeza?” (What Do We Have on Our Heads?) focuses on the hairstyles and headdresses of the sculptures, and the museum’s app includes another family route with audio, images and videos. The free activity “Juntos nada más” (Just Together) is designed for family groups with children aged 5 to 12: the children take part in workshops and the adults in guided tours. Schoolchildren taking part in the educational programmes receive a free-admission pass for weekends and public holidays (“Te invito al Museo”, “I’ll invite you to the museum”).

Getting there & parking

The three sites are spread along the pedestrianised Calle de Cadenas de San Gregorio, in the historic centre of Valladolid.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Bookshop with the same opening hours as the museum.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent

The chapel, the conference room, the courtyards of the Palacio de Villena and the Colegio de San Gregorio, temporary exhibition rooms and gardens can be hired.

Plan your visit