Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis
Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis features on the Gingerguide audio walk through Porto. Give it roughly ~90 min: enough to look, hear a two to three minute story on the spot, and ask the AI guide whatever the story leaves open.
- Type museum
- Suggested visit ~90 min
- Porto Porto guide
About Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis
Portugal's oldest national museum, founded in 1833, housed in a Baroque palace, the Palácio das Carrancas, and featuring the finest collection of Portuguese art from the 18th and 19th centuries, including works by sculptor António Soares dos Reis.
The Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis is Portugal's oldest national museum, founded in 1833 from the collections of religious convents dissolved by the Liberal government. It is housed in the Palácio das Carrancas, a magnificent late-Baroque palace in the western part of Porto's historic centre that also served as Napoleon's general Soult's headquarters during the French occupation of Porto in 1809. The museum takes its name from António Soares dos Reis (1847–1889), Porto's greatest sculptor of the 19th century, whose masterpiece O Desterrado (The Exile, 1872), a marble figure of extraordinary psychological intensity, is the museum's most celebrated work. The collection includes decorative arts, Portuguese gold and silverwork, paintings, sculpture, azulejo tiles, and glass from the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as Portuguese Baroque religious sculpture. The garden of the Palácio das Carrancas, one of Porto's most peaceful urban spaces, is accessible through the museum.
Did you know? The Palácio das Carrancas served as Marshal Soult's headquarters during the French occupation of Porto in 1809. When Wellington's forces surprised the French by crossing the Douro in wine barges, Soult fled so quickly he reportedly left behind his silver dining service.
How long is a visit to Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis?
Set aside roughly ~90 min for Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis. That covers a good look and the narrated story, and because you set the pace you can always stay on.
Is Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis worth your time?
Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis is among the 25 narrated highlights the Gingerguide team chose for Porto, so it is worth a look. Hear the story for the context, then ask the AI guide for anything more.
Nearby stops in Porto
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