Museums and Palaces

The Martins Sarmento Society is a cultural institution founded in 1881. It holds a diversified and valuable patrimony, including the Martins Sarmento Archaeological Museum, main reference of pre-roman cultures in Portugal and one of the most important museums of these cultures in Europe.

The museum is housed in the 14th century Gothic cloister of the church of São Domingos, and besides the a fine collection of prehistoric and proto-historical archaeology, epigraphy and numismatics it also has a collection of contemporary art. One of the most important pieces is a funereal stele known as the Pedra Formosa (the Beautiful Stone), which was brought to the museum in 1897 at the initiative of Dr. Martins Sarmento.