Archaeological Museum of Asturias

Latitude: 43.3628006 Length: -5.8423877
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We do not exaggerate a hair if we say that this The museum is the most emblematic and modern of Spanish archeology. After twelve years of remodeling, and an investment of 16 million euros, this museum in Oviedo is a spectacular dip in ancient waters. It is still unknown to many, including the Asturians themselves, but we are talking about the most surprising center of Asturias. We invite you to visit it so that you can prove us right.

Nothing less than 4.800 square meters to undertake an enigmatic journey from the Paleolithic to the Middle Ages, including in an outstanding way the two Asturian elements recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage of Humanity: rock art and pre-Romanesque art. In short, an outstanding collection, as it can not be otherwise, in a land that dates the first presence of human groups makes 300.000 years, in the ancestral Quaternary.

What treasures do we find in the Archaeological Museum?

The building puts at our disposal three floors. In the first, the Asturian and Neolithic prehistory is fulfilled; the second is for the time of the castros astures and the presence of Rome in the region; the third delights us with the Medieval Asturias.

The tour of the museum is completed with the exceptional visit to the cloister of the old convent, formed by twenty vaults of four meters of light, of Gothic design and a frieze with a Renaissance air. In this space the ancient medieval sarcophagi and shields remain and a semicircular structure has been added, dating from between the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries, possibly related to the collection of water and which has appeared in the bowels of the convent itself during restoration work .

The archaeological works in Asturias go back to the old Monuments Commission of Asturias. Created in the mid-nineteenth century, it is the first institution to protect the cultural heritage of Asturias that collected the remains of the main Asturian monasteries, collecting pieces of chance findings or donations from scholars and collectors of the time. From 1990, the Asturian archeology obtained a remarkable development, entering a great amount of materials of all the epochs -especially of the Average Age- coming from historical helmets of cities and towns, as well as of temples and monasteries. Needless to say, hundreds of relevant pieces are exhibited in this space: bison bones, hunting harpoons, funerary vessels, Roman stelae, reconstructed mosaics, ashlars, nobilarian shields ...

But the exhibition at the Oviedo museum is articulated in such a way that it transcends the material record to delve into the true essence of the societies that preceded us: their organization of the territory, social hierarchy, political structures, beliefs, artistic manifestations and a thousand enigmas. As for prehistory, in this center we will discover the richness of its manifestations, since Asturias has almost fifty decorated caves and abundant art furniture. From the Neolithic we will be surprised by the megaliths, with their ritual and territorial sense, incorporated into the Asturian landscape as a reflection of the new peasant society. The intensive exploitation of copper mines during this period speaks of a long history as a mining region. The castros constitute the social model of Asturias between the end of the Bronze Age and the Roman conquest. The use of iron is generalized, the improvement of cultivation techniques and the first fortified towns are built. Nowadays, the castros remain as one of the most significant elements of the Asturian landscape. A landscape also occupied by the Roman army in the time of Augustus, who sought the benefit of the gold mines in the western sector of the region. At this time new economic and commercial activities are developed and the transformation of customs is promoted in a population with a mining and peasant tradition.

The Kingdom of Asturias inaugurates the Middle Ages. Royal seats, churches, monasteries and castles are the main centers of power of the monarchy and the high medieval aristocracy. The art of the Astur Monarchy It will stand out for its architectural and ornamental originality. From the XNUMXth century on, the new urban centers and towns (the Asturian Polas) concentrated the population and centralized administrative, commercial and artisan functions. In these cities, towns and villages, new Romanesque and Gothic churches are built ...

How do they tell us?

One of the greatest merits of this Oviedo museum is that access to all this density of information is simplified and easily assimilated, in part due to the numerous interactive tools that allow you to acquire knowledge as if you were playing. Touch screens, pieces that propose a set of hands, trays that are removed from their supports, a variety of audiovisuals and other resources designed for children, such as i-points: interactive tables with small games. There are also replicas of significant objects that we can touch, and technological alternatives for people with hearing or visual problems.

In addition to exhibiting, the Archaeological Museum of Asturias has the function of safeguarding all remains and archaeological objects exhumed in the excavations of the Principality. It also has the obligation to carry out the promotion of research and the promotion of Asturian archeology. Therefore, it is equipped with a modern storage infrastructure and a strict conservation and restoration program for the exposed and stored materials.

Finally, the Library of the Archaeological Museum, with more than 9.000 copies, it is considered a specialized center in prehistory, archeology, history and numismatics. It is aimed at museum professionals, researchers and is open to the general public interested in the world of archeology.

Asturias Archaeological Museum Hours

· Monday and Tuesday closed.
· Wednesday to Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 20:00 p.m.
· Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. to 14:00 p.m. and from 17:00 p.m. to 20:00 p.m.
· Sundays and holidays from 9:30 a.m. to 15:00 p.m.

· Free access.

Source: Archaeological Museum of Asturias.