Vilamuseu

About

Vilamuseu, the Municipal Museum of Villajoyosa, (Alicante, Spain), is located on the site of the former Public School Alvaro Esquerdo, an eclectic building from which the facade has been preserved. It is a museum of the city that has an exceptional collection mainly archaeological and ethnographic, with numerous unique or extraordinary pieces in the Iberian Peninsula, such as Phoenician gold jewelry, the Egyptian New Year Flask, the Iberian Vase of the Threshold of the Hereafter, etc. It also conserves paleontological, mineral, natural history, decorative arts and other collections, coming mostly from Villajoyosa. The new museum, named Vilamuseu, opened its doors in November 2016. It is a great facility of a total of 4500 m2 built with funds from the Plan Confianza of the Generalitat Valenciana. Vilamuseu is also the headquarters of the municipal Network of museums and monuments of Villajoyosa. The museum's building, museum and public services have been designed in accordance with universal design principles, to any physical, organic, sensory and mental disabilities, making it one of the most accessible museums in Europe. Vilamuseu also conserves the funds of the underwater archaeological excavations of the Roman Bou-Ferrer shipwreck, the largest ancient ship undergoing excavation in the Mediterranean, declared to be of cultural interest, among which are the large lead ingots with the inscription IMP ) AVG (ustus) GER (manicus), probably referring to the emperor Nero; the materials of the Islamic farms, rural mosque and cemetery of l'Armisera; or the important collection of funds of the XVIII, XIX and XX centuries, in which the collection of dresses and old clothing stands out. Vilamuseu organizes numerous guided tours and events in monuments and sites throughout the year, such as the Festum Alonis historical recreation festival at the end of April, archaeostronomic observations on the equinoxes from the Iberian Sanctuary of the Malladeta or dives for sport divers to the Excavations of the Bou Ferrer shipwreck (within the project expressly authorized by the Generalitat Valenciana).

At a glance

• Typical visit: about 1 hour 30 minutes