National Archaeological Museum of Tarragona (MNAT)

About National Archaeological Museum of Tarragona (MNAT)

While the Large Museo National Archaeological de Tarragona (MNAT) building in Plaça del Rei is being refurbished, many exhibits from this museum are being displayed in the Tinglado 4, former Tarragona port passanger terminal building located in the Serallo area of Tarragona Port Costa Wharf.

In 1986, this building, together with the rest of the complex on the Costa Wharf, was retired from port operations and opened up to the citizens of Tarragona as a setting for cultural events, museum and exhibition space. Although there are no remains of the original Roman port where the first Romans disembarked to set up the military outpost that eventually became the capital of Hispania Citerior, this is a fitting location being the point where the first Romans set foot on spanish soil.

The port is more than 2,000 years old with the Romans building the first artificial port facilities with breakwater and if you keep your eyes open when walking round Serallo, you may see some large carved stones which may originate from the Roman Period. The current appearance of the port dates from the 18th century and substantially grew during the 19th and 20th centuries as a port for cargo and passenger traffic plus fishing, around which the El Serrallo fishermans neighbourhood was established.

In 218 BC, as Rome competed with Carthage for domination of the Mediterranean, Roman troops disembarked in what would become the first Roman town founded on the Iberian Peninsula and the operational base for the conquest of Hispania. In the 1st century BC, Caesar granted the town the status of a colony and shortly afterwards Augustus named it capital of the province.

Image Gallery for National Archaeological Museum of Tarragona (MNAT)

Click on any of the 43 images to open full screen gallery player

❮ ❯