6 museums in Santiago that you should visit

6 museums in Santiago that you should visit: from pre-Columbian to contemporary art

Santiago has a significant number of museums, of different disciplines and themes. Here we tell you about six museums that are perfect for learning about the history of art in Chile, from pre-Hispanic times to the present day.
If you are looking for an educational and economic option to do in the capital, a very good alternative is the different art museums in Santiago. Several of them have important exhibitions and works by prominent artists, both national and international.

Below, we tell you about six museums that are ideal for taking a tour of the history of art in the country. In them you can see works of pre-Columbian art, colonial religious art and also works of modern and contemporary art. They will surely surprise you.
Chilean Museum of Pre-Columbian Art

We begin with a museum located just one block from the Plaza de Armas in Santiago, which has on display an important collection of pre-Columbian objects that allow us to learn about the way of life and worldview of the native peoples before colonization.

Among the pieces that can be seen in this museum are Diaguita pottery, Chinchorro and Chemamull mummies, Mapuche wooden statues used in funeral rites. There are also works of art from the Mayan, Aztec, Andean cultures and native peoples of the Amazon and the Caribbean.

The museum is located in the old building of the Royal Customs Palace of Santiago, at Bandera 361, corner of Compañía. It is open from Tuesday to Sunday between 10:00 and 18:00 hours.

The entrance fee is $3,000 for Chileans and residents, $12,000 for foreigners, $1,000 for national students and $5,000 for foreign students. It is recommended to reserve in advance by writing to the email visitas@museoprecolombino.cl
San Francisco Colonial Art Museum

This museum houses the largest display of colonial art in Chile and has the particularity of being located in the Church of San Francisco, which holds the record for being the oldest colonial building in the city of Santiago.

It is an important space for historical and religious dissemination, which was created in 1969 by the Franciscan Order. In it you can see paintings with religious themes from the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as old pieces of sculpture, goldsmithing, ironwork and ironwork.

It is located in the heart of Santiago, on Avenida Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins 834, and is open Monday to Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., and on Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Tickets cost $2,000 for Chileans and residents, $3,000 for foreigners, and $1,000 for national students and people over 60 years of age.
Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes (MNBA)

The Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes is one of the most important museums in our country and one of the main disseminators of visual arts in Chile. It has a collection of more than 3,000 pieces and houses both permanent and temporary exhibitions.

One of its most notable collections is a selection of Chilean sculptures, which is the largest in the country. It also has the second most complete collection of paintings in the country, only after the Pinacoteca of the University of Concepción.

In addition, this museum is located in an imposing palace built in 1909 and declared a Historical Monument, which has a design inspired by the Petit Palais in Paris.

It is located at José Miguel de la Barra 650, in front of Parque Forestal, and opens from Tuesday to Sunday between 10:00 and 18:30. Admission is free.
Museo Ralli Santiago

The Ralli Museum in Santiago is located in a modern building with beautiful gardens, which houses 18 exhibition rooms in which you can see an important collection of Latin American art, unique in our country.

This museum belongs to the Harry Ralli International Foundation, a private non-profit institution that is dedicated to promoting the Ralli Collection, made up of outstanding works of Latin American and European art.

The museum is located at Alonso De Sotomayor 4110, in the commune of Vitacura, and during January it is open on Fridays and Saturdays between 10:30 and 17:00 hours. Admission is free.
Museo de Artes Visuales (MAVI)

The Museo de Artes Visuales is located in the heart of the Lastarria neighborhood, a tourist sector of the capital known for its bohemian and cultural atmosphere. This space dedicated to art has been operating since 2001 and has a collection of 750 works by Chilean artists, which spans from the 60s to the present.

The museum is located in a modern building with seven exhibition halls, where you can see part of the permanent collection, as well as temporary exhibitions. It is also possible to visit a room in the museum where the Santiago Archaeological Museum (MAS) operates, where you can see different objects belonging to the indigenous peoples of Chile.

It is located on José Victorino Lastarria 307 and is open from Tuesday to Sunday, between 10:00 and 18:00 hours. Admission costs $2,500 for the general public, $1,000 for students, and free for seniors, children under 12, people with disabilities and students with a university card.
Museum of Contemporary Art (MAC)

At the Museum of Contemporary Art you can see works by prominent national artists, such as Roberto Matta, Nemesio Antúnez and Matilde Pérez, as well as several renowned international artists.

It has a collection of paintings of almost 600 works, which is mainly made up of national creations. It also has a collection of about 90 sculptures, a collection of about 1,200 prints, and a collection of drawings that includes watercolors, tempera, and mixed media.
This museum has two locations, one in Parque Quinta Normal, at Av. Matucana 464, and another in Parque Forestal, at Ismael Valdés Vergara 506. This latter location shares a building with the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, since both museums are connected by a corridor. Both locations have free admission and are open from Tuesday to Sunday between 10:30 and 17:30.
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