Things to do in Braga, Northern Portugal: The Best Specialty Museums

The D. Diogo de Sousa Museum of Archaeology works on the support of archaeological research, conservation and promotion of regional archaeological sites and artefacts through display and educational activities. The museum is open to the public since June 2007 in a fantastic new building with roman ruins preserved ‘in situ’.The permanent exhibition starts in the corridor at the entrance with a brief explanation of the museum’s history followed by the collection from the Palaeolithic to the Early Midle Age. Most part of the exhibition shows how Bracara Augusta (roman town Braga) was integrated into the Roman Empire, the urban development of the city, the organization of public and domestic areas, the roads and the nearby necropolises and the religion in roman and paleo-christian times.

Pio XII Museum has a vast inheritance in litica, numismatic, ceramic, textile, sculpture, painting and goldsmithery areas. In the Medieval Tower the history Braga is represented and the visitor is able to see the city from above. Visitants may also know a significant part of Henrique Medina's work, one of the big portrait artists of XX century.

The Museum of Costume demand through its exhibitions, share with the general public the ethnographic traditions “Baixo Minho”, and in particular, the costumes worn by our people at the end of the XIX century, and early XX century. In this Museum, are on display the various costumes collected in the district of Braga, depending on the different geographical areas.