Chilean Museum of Pre-Columbian Art (Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino) description and photos - Chile: Santiago (Topic)

Chilean Museum of Pre-Columbian Art (Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino) description and photos - Chile: Santiago. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The title in English is Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino.

Photo and description

More than three decades have passed since the founding of the Chilean Museum of Pre-Columbian Art. It was an innovative idea for Latin American countries to create an institution that would protect, study and disseminate the creative heritage of all the pre-Columbian peoples of America, regardless of the political boundaries that separate these countries.

It was founded by an outstanding Chilean architect and collector antiques Sergio Larrain Garcia-Moreno, who was looking for a place to preserve his collection of pre-Columbian artifacts acquired over fifty years.

With the support of the municipal government of Santiago, as well as the personal involvement of Sergio Larrain Garcia-Moreno, construction began museum and founded a research institute on its basis. The museum opened its doors in December 1981 at the Palacio de la Real Aduana de Santiago, in the historic center of Santiago de Chile. From the end of 2011 to 2013, the museum was closed for updating its collections and restoration work.

The building of the Palacio de la Real Aduana de Santiago, also known as the Palace of the Royal Customs and the Old Court Palace, built between 1805 and 1807. Its construction was entrusted to the military engineer Jose Maria de Atero and was carried out by the famous architect Joaquin Toesca. In 1969, this building was included in the list of national monuments of Chile.

The museum has an extensive collection of materials on pre-Columbian culture, the culture of the Aztecs, Maya and Incas, Chilean indigenous peoples - Dihuitas, Mapuche, Rapa Nui, Selknam and many others.

The museum holds more than 3,000 exhibits representing nearly 100 different cultures of the pre-Columbian period over 10,000 years. The collection is divided into four zones. The first, Area mesoamerica, in which you can see a statue of the deity Xipe Totec, an incense burner from Teotihuacan, Mayan bas-reliefs from Easter Island. The second, Area Intermedia, on the shelves of the room displays ceramics from the Valdivia and Capuli cultures, gold objects from the province of Veraguas (Panama) and Diquis, a pre-Columbian indigenous culture from Costa Rica that flourished from AD 700. before 1530 AD The third, Area Andes Centrales, has a large collection of masks and copper figurines, many of which have been removed from graves. Also in this part of the exhibition you can see a large collection of textiles of the Moche culture (the territory of northern Peru) and the Chavin culture - civilization, that developed in the northern Andes in the territory of modern Peru from 900 BC. before 200 BC The oldest exhibit in this part of the museum is dyed fabric, which is almost 3000 years old. The fourth zone, Area Andres del Sur, is a collection of ceramic urns from the Aguada culture, snuffboxes from the San Pedro culture and Inca items from the territory of modern Chile and Argentina.

Visitors to the museum can see the exhibits of the permanent and temporary exhibition of the pre-Columbian Latin American art all year round.

We also recommend reading Marienkirche church description and photos - Austria: Klagenfurt

Topic: Chilean Museum of Pre-Columbian Art (Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino) description and photos - Chile: Santiago.