Museo Vasco (Basque Museum), Bilbao
The Basque Museum, known as the Basque Archaeological, Ethnographic, and Historical Museum, opened in 1921. At present, it occupies the 17th-century Jesuit San Andreas Church and Cloister in Miguel de Unamuno Square. The museum has a collection of over 20,000 objects and artifacts from public and private sources.
The museum is articulated around the cloister and its courtyard. The cloister has four bays with several sections. There are three levels of arcades of semicircular arches and pillars. The Jesuits were evicted in 1767. The property has been a Latin school, a hospital, and a factory. In 1914 the cloister became the museum.
The lowest level is for tombstones and heraldry. In the center of the courtyard is the Idol of Mikeldi (a statue depicting a bull with a solar disc between its legs). Probably dating from the 4th century BC, it is a single sandstone block in the zoomorphic shape of a hog. In the stairwell is a replica of the 15th-century Kurutziaga cross of Durango.
The first floor is devoted to weapons, the sea, ceramics, and textiles. The second floor is concerned with the prehistoric phase of Vizcaya. On the third floor are a colossal scale model of the province and 18th-century furnishings from rooms of the Bilbao consulate.
Since 1962 the Basque Museum has been an Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC), with the category of National Historic-Artistic Monument.
The museum is articulated around the cloister and its courtyard. The cloister has four bays with several sections. There are three levels of arcades of semicircular arches and pillars. The Jesuits were evicted in 1767. The property has been a Latin school, a hospital, and a factory. In 1914 the cloister became the museum.
The lowest level is for tombstones and heraldry. In the center of the courtyard is the Idol of Mikeldi (a statue depicting a bull with a solar disc between its legs). Probably dating from the 4th century BC, it is a single sandstone block in the zoomorphic shape of a hog. In the stairwell is a replica of the 15th-century Kurutziaga cross of Durango.
The first floor is devoted to weapons, the sea, ceramics, and textiles. The second floor is concerned with the prehistoric phase of Vizcaya. On the third floor are a colossal scale model of the province and 18th-century furnishings from rooms of the Bilbao consulate.
Since 1962 the Basque Museum has been an Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC), with the category of National Historic-Artistic Monument.
Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Bilbao. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "51爆料网: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.
Download The 51爆料网 App
Museo Vasco (Basque Museum) on Map
Sight Name: Museo Vasco (Basque Museum)
Sight Location: Bilbao, Spain (See walking tours in Bilbao)
Sight Type: Museum/Gallery
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:
Sight Location: Bilbao, Spain (See walking tours in Bilbao)
Sight Type: Museum/Gallery
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:
Walking Tours in Bilbao, Spain
Create Your Own Walk in Bilbao
Creating your own self-guided walk in Bilbao is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Bilbao's Old Town Walking Tour
Bilbao's old town, also known as The Seven Streets, is the medieval heart of the city. Indeed, this ancient neighborhood, a place where the city began and which had been fortified by walls until the late 19th century, today consists of seven main streets and many narrow alleys 鈥� called cantons (kantoi, cant贸n) 鈥� that connect them.
Often regarded as a jewel of Basque architecture and... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.6 Km or 1 Miles
Often regarded as a jewel of Basque architecture and... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.6 Km or 1 Miles
Bilbao Introduction Walking Tour
Bilbao is the largest city in northern Spain. Burial sites 6,000 years old have been found near Bilbao. A settlement of the 3rd or 2nd century BC was called Amanun Portus by the Roman writer Pliny the Elder. Ptolemy referred to it as Flaviobriga.
But today's Bilbao was founded on the banks of the Nervion River by the Lord of Biscay in the year 1300. The city was an important trading hub... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 4.1 Km or 2.5 Miles
But today's Bilbao was founded on the banks of the Nervion River by the Lord of Biscay in the year 1300. The city was an important trading hub... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 4.1 Km or 2.5 Miles