National Museum of Ancient Art closes on September 29th for renovations

According to the museum, during the last week of opening, between today and September 28, admission to the museum will be free, and a program of activities for children and families with free entry is planned for Sunday, including guided tours, games and musical moments.

During the works, interventions are planned in three areas of the MNAA building: on the 2nd floor, dedicated to the collections of goldsmithing, jewelry, ceramics and arts of expansion, "the updating of the museum equipment is planned, as well as the respective exhibition discourse".

At the European Art Gallery, "the signage and museography will be redesigned and updated; the building's renovation project should include the roofs and the preservation of the facades," the museum states.

The conservation and restoration campaign of the Albertas Chapel, part of the museum building, "continues, however, to take place, with its reopening also conditioned by the PRR calendar."

Regarding the reopening, it is also "conditioned by the calendar of this intervention process" of the plan's works.

"This is a unique moment and opportunity to prepare the museum for the next decade, and we hope that the reopening will provide visitors with more inclusive and accessible facilities and an updated understanding of our collections," he further emphasizes, regarding the future of the entity after the planned projects.

The works are carried out under the auspices of the Lisbon Tourism and Cultural Heritage Association - Public Institute (PC-IP), the entity responsible for monitoring and physically and financially implementing the plan in the sector.

At the beginning of the year, the MNAA had announced the closure of the European Painting Gallery for works within the framework of the PRR in March, keeping all other exhibition rooms open to the public, including decorative arts, nativity scenes, furniture, jewelry, textiles, ceramics and Portuguese painting and sculpture from the Middle Ages to the 19th century.

Last year, in June, the previous director of the MNAA, Joaquim Caetano, had already indicated that work on the air conditioning system would begin the following month, followed by work on the facades and roof.

According to the most recent information from the Mais Transparência portal, under the PRR, funding of 6.57 million euros was allocated for interventions in the MNAA, of which 1.32 million has already been paid, with a completion deadline of June 30, 2026.

Created in 1884, the MNAA currently houses a collection of around 40,000 pieces, housing the country's most important public collection of painting, sculpture, and decorative arts -- Portuguese, European, and Expansion -- from the Middle Ages to the 19th century, including the largest number of works classified as "national treasures," as well as the largest collection of Portuguese furniture.

The collection includes, in various areas, some of the world's leading works of artistic heritage, namely the Panels of São Vicente, by Nuno Gonçalves, considered a masterpiece of 15th-century European painting.

The RRP is a European program, with an implementation period until 2026, which aims to implement a set of reforms and investments aimed at restoring sustained economic growth after the pandemic.

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