Cities Tourism Guide - Barcelona History Museums Art

Barcelona Museums, Barcelona History, Barcelona Art Galleries

Barcelona's numerous museums and Art galleries, over 50 and listed in full via the Barcelona Tourism Webguide right, cover the full spectrum of Barcelona's history from ancient Roman to 19th and 20th century industrial at the superb Museu d'Historia de Catalunya. Barcelona's Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC) at Montjuic contains one of the world's best collection of Romanesque art, and for Catalan art you won't find better. Masters such as Ramon Casas and Fortuny are on display here at the MNAC. For the best of contemporary art head to the gleaming white building in El Raval - Barcelona's Contemporary Art Gallery (MACBA). Other art gallery gems around Barcelona include of course the renowned and world best Picasso Museum in the Barri Gotic, plus the Joan Miro Foundation at Montjuic. Not forgetting modernisme at its most representative - the Antoni Tapies Foundation in L'Eixample near Passig de Gracia Metro. Architectural pieces by Antoni Gaudi are across Barcelona, but particularly prevalent in the L'Eixample area. Gaudi Barcelona buildings such as the Sagrada Familia, Casa Batllo, Palau Guell and Park Guell are likewise not to be missed.

Head to the Barcelona Museums in Barcelona's Gothic Quarter such as Museu De La Catedral, Museu d'Historia de la Ciutat and Museu Frederic Mares (weblinks right) to explore Barcelona's ancient history, particularly Roman. Checkout too the Archaeology Museum at Montjuic - website right.

Right on Barcelona's waterfront sits the comprehensive History Museum of Catalunya (weblink right). If you only have time for a few Barcelona museums, this one is well worth putting on your list. Spread across several floors incorporating 7 themes from Roots to Our Sea to Steam powered Nation, the Electric Years and the superb Defeat and Recovery which digs pretty deeply into Barcelona's strategic role within the Spanish Civil war, all you need to know on Catalan history is in here, presented in innovative and interactive ways.

Another Barcelona Museum gem is the Barcelona Maritime Museum near the waterfront and Monument Colon (Metro Drassanes). This museum is the central focus not just for Barcelona's maritime history but also for the maritime culture of the Mediterranean as a whole. A huge collection of vessel models, nautical equipment, maritime paintings, charts, figurehead and more are held here. There's a Barcelona Maritime Museum annex on the water too down in the Port Vell area. Checkout the Barcelona Maritime Museums weblink right for details. An application has been made for UNESCO World Heritage status - the Maritime Museum sits on the Royal Shipyards complex and is a unique example of Gothic civil architecture.