National Museum of Roman Art Facts for Kids

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National Museum of Roman Art

Museo Nacional de Arte Romano
Facade of the National Museum of Roman Art
Former name	Museo Arqueológico de Mérida
Established	26 March 1838 (1838-03-26)
Location	Mérida, Spain
Type	Archaeology museum
Collections	Roman art
Collection size	37,000
Visitors	239,798 (2017)
Architect	Rafael Moneo
Owner	General State Administration
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Type:	Cultural
Criteria:	iii, iv
Designated:	1993 (17th session)
Part of:	Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida
Reference #:	664-017
Region:	Europe and North America
Spanish Property of Cultural Interest
Type:	Non-movable
Criteria:	Monument
Designated:	1 March 1962
Reference #:	RI-51-0001309

The National Museum of Roman Art (Spanish: Museo Nacional de Arte Romano; MNAR) is an archaeology museum located in Mérida, Spain. Devoted to Roman art, it exhibits extensive material from the archaeological ensemble of Mérida (the Roman colony of Augusta Emerita), one of the largest and most extensive archaeological sites in Spain, registered as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.

History

An archaeology museum in Mérida was created for the first time through a royal order issued on 26 March 1838. A church building was repurposed to house the collections as part of the Ecclesiastical confiscations of Mendizábal.

In 1975, on the occasion of the two thousandth anniversary of the city's foundation, the museum was refounded as the National Museum of Roman Art. The current building is a work by Spanish architect Rafael Moneo. Building works started in 1981. The new premises were unveiled on 19 September 1986.