Museum Centre
The most representative pieces are displayed in the Museum Centre at Castelo de S. Jorge, housed in what remains of the old Royal Palace of the Citadel. This residence of Portuguese kings was severely damaged by the 1755 earthquake.
The space is divided into three rooms which correspond to three subject areas: the Castle and the City (Ogival Room); the Islamic Castle (Room of Columns) and Other Lives (Cistern Room).
The objects exhibited here include an interesting collection from the archaeological excavations carried out in the citadel. This is the area where the National Monument known as Castelo is located, but also the castle’s residential neighbourhood.
The Room of Columns exhibits archaeological objects that illustrate the way of life of the communities that inhabited the Casbah of Lisbon (Al Ushbuna) between the Reign of the Taifas (11th century) and the and the Almoravid Empire (late-11th century to mid-12th century).
In the Cistern Room, visitors are invited to travel through time, taking in the Iron Age, the Roman period, the Portuguese medieval period and the modern period, up to the great earthquake of 1755. The two undulating showcases in the centre of the room contain objects with clear traces of the catastrophe (fragmented, burnt and deformed), reminding us of the impact of the earthquake and the fires which followed it