Matthew Barker

Cusco´s Best Museums Told by a Local

Profit from this short list of highlighted museums in Cusco from a local representative of Peru for Less

If you are a museum go-er and want to check out a few of the dozens of museums in the Cusco, Peru, here is a short guide list of official museums and a brief description of the best pick for that category.  

Art Museums:

Contemporary Art Museum

Inca Museum

Pre-Columbian Art Museum

Popular Art Museum

Regional History Museum

Best Pick: Honestly when it comes to art museums it is hard to say one is better than the other, it is much to the preference of the individuals tastes.  In terms of collections though, the best pick would be the Inca Museum, after all you are in the heartland of the Incan Empire!  It has a small but well organized collection of art reflecting Pre-Columbian art and handicraft, including textiles, ceramics, metal works and jewelry.  There is also an impressive gold and silver collection.  To top it off there is a great restaurant inside the museum so guests can enjoy the beautiful court yard and absorb the centuries of art that surrounding them.  

Religious Museums:

Archaeological Museum

Natural Science Museum

Casa Cabrera

Wiese Sudameris Bank´s Cultural Museum

Archiepiscopal Palace Museum of Religious Art,

Santa Catalina Convent and Museum

La Merced Convent Museum

San Francisco Museum

Cathedral´s Museum

San Jeronimo Museum

Best Pick: Santa Catalina Convent and Museum is the best of these and it is also easy to access as it is located in the Plaza de Armas.  The Convent was built on the House of the Sun Virgins or “Aclla Wasi” and is architecturally extraordinary and the interior design is part of the beauty of this museum.  Inaugurated by the convent in 1975, the museum has a rich collection of Cuzqueño art that spans the centuries of Spanish influence.  Guides point out the European vs. traditional Andean art mixed in each painting which is a fascinating display of how the traditionally polytheistic incorporated elements of their beliefs into the religious art of the Spanish. 

Site Museums:

Chinchero Site Museum

Koricancha Archaeological Museum

Taki Museum

CATCCO

Yucay Site Museum

Best Pick: Hands down would be the Koricancha Archaeological Museum.  This exhibit is of the interior of what is left of the Inca temple of the sun but is today still an active Dominican Monastery.  The structure itself was built on and transformed into a Dominican church named Santo Domingo, and arguable the most beautiful church in the city.  There are three rooms, each dedicated to an era; Pre-Inca, Inca and Colonial.  The ruins inside still have holes where the Inca were said to hang giant plates of gold from and you will see up close the incredible architectural wonders the Pre-Inca and Inca created. 

Hidden Treasures:

Don’t be afraid to wander down the side streets of Cusco to check out the many private art collections in stores, coffee shops and private galleries.  Many are free or have a suggested donation box.

Best Pick: Museo El Quijote is this categories best pick and a personal favorite.   It has a rich display of primarily contemporary Cuzqueño school of art.  It also has a gallery of up and coming artists who have gone to the attached school under the wing of Cusco´s infamous Jesus Vereno.  The highlights of this gallery are the intricate sculptures made out of small animal bones, including ‘The Cathedral’ and ‘El Quijote’.  A hands-down favorite, so try to catch this collection!

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