The Mataró Museum is a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

Mataró Mataró () is the capital and largest town of the ''comarca'' of the Maresme, in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia Autonomous Community, Spain. It is located on the Costa del Maresme, to the south of Costa Brava, between Cabrera de Mar and Sa ...

, in El

Maresme Maresme () is a ''comarca'' (county) located along the Catalan Mediterranean coast in Spain, between the ''comarques'' of Barcelonès (at the Southwest) and Selva (at the Northeast), and also bordering with Vallès Oriental (at the west). Its c ...

, with a central office in Can Serra, a fortified

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

building dating back to 1565. The museum, which is part of the

Barcelona Provincial Council Local Museum Network The Barcelona Provincial Council Local Museum Network ( ca, Xarxa de Museus Locals), also known as ''Catalonia’s Biggest Museum'', is a tool for support and collaboration from and for the museums of the province, which makes available to municipal ...

, also manages the different local heritage centres, such as: * The ''Ca l’Arenas'' Art Centre, part of the Mataró Museum. * The '' Torre Llauder'' Archaeological Site. * The ''El Montnegre i el Corredor Park Documentation Centre'' of the

Catalan Coastal Range The Catalan Coastal Range ( ca, Serralada Litoral Catalana, ) is a system of mountain ranges running parallel to the Mediterranean Sea coast in Catalonia, Spain. It is part of the Catalan Mediterranean System. Its main axis runs between the Fo ...

. * The '' Can Marfà Knitwear Museum'' is devoted to the knit fabric industry.The Can Marfà Knit Fabric
Retrieved December 23, 2019.

Building

Can Serra, built in 1565, is Renaissance-style building with a ground floor and two upper floors. The facade is particularly noteworthy for its voussoir doorway and its windows framed by mouldings and corbels. The original interior structure has been preserved, including the original

wood panelling Panelling (or paneling in the U.S.) is a millwork wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials. Panelling was developed in antiquity to make roo ...

, which is of particular interest.

Collections

The museum's collections are highly diverse, both in terms of origin and type, and comprise archaeological materials from

prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

, Iberian,

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

and modern times, natural specimens, historical objects and an art collection made up of religious

retable A retable is a structure or element placed either on or immediately behind and above the altar or communion table of a church. At the minimum it may be a simple shelf for candles behind an altar, but it can also be a large and elaborate structur ...

s and carvings and

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

and Noucentista paintings, of which a series of engravings by

Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 174616 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, and ...

are of particular note.

Torre Llauder Archaeological Site

The Torre Llauder Archaeological Site is where the remains of the stately quarters of a

village, with

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

tiles, are preserved. Built in the time of

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

, at the end of the 1st century BC, it was part of the territory comprising the Roman city of Iluro.

Ca l'Arenas Art Centre

The Ca l'Arenas Art Centre of the Mataró Museum is a product of artist Jordi Arenas i Clavell's legacy to his hometown, an offshoot of the Mataró Museum specialising in

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

, with special emphasis on artistic activity in the city of Mataró.

Can Marfà Knitwear Museum

The Can Marfà Knitwear Museum is devoted to the knitting and hosiery industry.

References

External links

*
Ca l'Arenas site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mataro Museum Barcelona Provincial Council Local Museum Network Mataró Local museums in Spain Archaeological museums in Catalonia Art museums and galleries in Catalonia