Lisbon has a big variety of museums. One can find almost anything he’s interested in. If you’re into art, Berardo Museum is the right choice, even if you have a thing for tiles, the Lisbon Tile Museum will provide the right activities. Furthermore, visitors with more historic interests, like in ancient Asian art, can find an extremely informative collection at Museu do Oriente.
The museum focuses on Asian art, more precisely, that with some Portuguese touches. In fact, the essence of those touches is not fixed. The displays could have been discovered by Portuguese explorers (see the Monument of Discoveries to find them) during one of their greatest discoveries or unearthed by excavations. The term “Asian art” is a good descriptive, but it should not be limited to only one or two cultures. For example, Japanese, Chinese, Indonesian, and other cultures are presented here at the same time. The main exhibitions consist of paintings, masks, ceramic items, and so on.
In case of curiosity towards the topic, visit the Gods of Asia exhibition. There’s no need to explain the meaning of the collection. Hindu and Buddhist gods are only one part of the exciting story.
While the exhibitions are quite ancient, the museum itself is very new, opened in 2008. The owner and the initiator of the museum is Orient Foundation of Portugal.
Interestingly, the Portuguese know how to turn the most unremarkable buildings into the most significant places of the city. This is how a simple warehouse was converted to a museum of Asian art. While the museum is very important, the building is left out of the best architectural wonders of Lisbon. The warehouse was built in the 40s, not the passionate Renaissance at all.
The admission is not expensive at all, around 5 Euro or less. This makes the museum one of the cheapest ones on the basis of comparison.
As I mentioned in the beginning, the museum is very informative, which makes it so special. It’s not only about viewing and observing, it’s also about learning. Museu do Oriente is also a cultural center, a place where culture and education are combined. Live shows are regularly held in the auditorium. You can deepen your knowledge by stepping a level up in Asian art. You can even take up courses of Asian cuisine and learn to cook the oldest dishes in the world.
Of course, there is a restaurant, for a nice and delicious lunch in between the exhibitions, and a gift shop, if you want to grab a few souvenirs for friends back home.
People with Asian decent will have a chance to refresh their memories of home. Others can look at Lisbon from a completely different point of view. In any case, visit this museum if your either interested in Asian art or Portugal’s historic actions influencing that art . . . or both!
