Redesigned Archaeological Museum in Lisbon, 2,500 years of history and city relics
The NARC, located in the city center near the Arco da Rua Augusta, provides an archaeological journey back into Lisbon’s past. It is situated beneath the Millennium bcp bank structure.
he Ncleo Arqueológico da Rua dos Correeiros (NARC) in Lisbon has a new design that is highly immersive in terms of its content. It was created by the ATELIER BRÜCKNER scenography experts in Stuttgart, and the museum will reopen on November 23rd. From the 24th of November, visitors are welcomed with guided tours. “NARC is an unusual place where the traditional presentation of time disappears: the past and present experience are linked; 2,500 years of history and vestiges of a city that has been filled with life uninterruptedly become an immersive experience,” says Shirin Brückner.
The NARC, located in the city center near the Arco da Rua Augusta, provides an archaeological journey back into Lisbon’s past. It is situated beneath the Millennium bcp bank structure. The archaeological site was discovered during excavations in 1991 and 1995, and it has been recognized as national cultural heritage since 2015. It provides access to all of Lisbon’s settlement phases, spanning over 2,500 years. Building ruins and excavated finds bear witness to the past, educating visitors about the Iberian-Punic, Roman, Visigoth, Islamic, medieval, and Pombal periods.
The visitor enters the Millennium bcp Foundation-sponsored museum from the well-known shopping street Rua dos Correeiros. The introduction provides an overview of the epochs that left their mark on Lisbon, as well as a chronological preview of the exhibition’s items, which range from Iron Age wall remnants of a Phoenician house to a baking oven that was still in use in the nineteenth century. One of the museum’s most famous exhibits is a 3rd century BC shard of earthenware depicting a stylized boat. Visitors are invited to explore interactive showcases that present objects discovered on-site.
Visitors descend into the past beginning with the prologue room. They experience the dig on a guided tour, passing over a bridge that allows access to the excavation site. Using an iPad, the guide activates light, sound, and informative layers that are projected onto the exhibits in their original location. Animated illustrations on the black glass walls that enclose the space provide additional information. The glowing blue and white filigree lines stand out in the dark and add to the space’s unique character. The excavation site is transformed into a staged setting. The original significance of the finds is conveyed by contextualizing them.
Pools set into the floor, for example, pique the interest of museum visitors. They are, in fact, antique fish tanks. This is demonstrated by a projected, animated fish graphic. Sardines were preserved as fish sauce and shipped by ship from ancient Olisipo to the Roman Empire. Antique amphorae, which were also on display, were used as transport containers. The ancient city’s economic foundations were fishing, fish preservation, salt production, and pottery.
An earthquake in 1755 was a watershed moment in Lisbon’s history. The museum’s neighborhood, Baixa, was almost completely destroyed. The Marquis of Pombal rebuilt the city center and gave it a forward-thinking, pioneering character. After him is named the Pombal style of construction, which is a symmetrically arranged urban plan with buildings made of earthquake-resistant wooden structures. The archaeological layers of the NARC reveal signs of the earthquake. There are house ruins and rubble to be seen. Animated illustrations depict the reconstruction’s innovative structures, which continue to characterize the cityscape even today.
The exhibition’s content is presented in both English and Portuguese.
The museum is open to the public for free.
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