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Numismatics Cabinet

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Numismatics Cabinet
(City Museum)
Palacete Viscondes Balsemao, home of the
Numismatics Cabinet
Map
Established1852 at the Porto Municipal Museum.
1942 at the Soares dos Reis National Museum.
1988 at Casa Tanit.
2008 in its current configuration.
WebsiteInstitution's website

The Numismatics Cabinet is one of the museum collections that make up the City Museum of Porto, housing one of the largest collections of numismatics in Portugal, focusing notably on Greek, Roman, Visigothic, Christian kingdoms, Arab, and Portuguese coins.[1][2]

Current configuration

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The City Museum refers to a group of museum collections scattered throughout the city of Porto. In addition to the Numismatics Cabinet, other collections include the archaeological site of Rua D. Hugo, Casa do Infante (North Tower), the Port Wine Museum, and the Romantic Museum of Quinta da Macieirinha.[3][4]

It is housed in the Palacete of the Viscounts of Balsemão (18th century), at 71 Praça de Carlos Alberto, in downtown Porto (metro: Trindade).[5][6]

History

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The collection began in 1850 with the acquisition of the private collection of João Allen (17811848) by the municipality for the establishment of the Porto Municipal Museum, inaugurated in 1852 on Rua da Restauração.[7]

It was not until 1937 that the process of cataloging the collection began, which was later moved to the Carrancas Palace in the same city, where the Soares dos Reis National Museum was inaugurated in 1942.

In this new location, the collection remained until its relocation to the facilities known as Casa Tait (or Quinta do Meio), in the parish of Massarelos, in December 1988.

Casa Tait, where the Numismatics Cabinet was housed from 1988 to 2009.

Since September 2008, the Numismatics Cabinet has been relocated to its current facilities in the Palacete of the Viscounts, on Praça de Carlos Alberto, where coins, medals, decorations, stamps, and banknote matrices are stored, covering the entire history of numismatics, from the origins of coinage to the present, including items of Greek, Roman, Suebian, Visigoth, and Arab origin.[8]

Admission to the museum is free, and in 2009, the number of visitors was 1,131.[9] The usual opening hours are Monday to Friday from 9:00 am to 7:30 pm, and on Saturdays from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm and from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm (April to October), and from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm and 1:00 pm to 5:30 pm (November to March); closed on Sundays and holidays.[10]

On February 1, 2018, maintenance and refurbishment work began, leading to the temporary closure of the museum.[11]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ "Numismatics Cabinet Archived November 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine". In Oporto Guide.
  2. ^ "Numismatics Cabinet Archived November 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine". In Stay in Porto.
  3. ^ Gilabert González, L. M. (2015). "The City Museum of Porto Project". Pages 103-104.
  4. ^ Gilabert González, L. M. (2001). Pages 469-470.
  5. ^ Virtual tour of the building Archived July 15, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. In Visitasvirtuais.cm-porto.pt.
  6. ^ "Numismatics Department of the Palace of the Viscounts of Balsemão". In Numista.com.
  7. ^ Pereira, Isabel. (2003). Page 12 Archived November 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ^ "City Museum. Collections: Numismatics Cabinet". On the Portuguese Cultural Heritage website.
  9. ^ "More than 44 thousand visited the municipal museums". In Jornal de Notícias. August 3, 2009.
  10. ^ "Numismatics Cabinet Archived November 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine". In Visit Porto.
  11. ^ "Numismatics Cabinet Archived November 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine". On the Porto City Hall website.

Bibliography

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