Archaeological Museum of Asturias, Oviedo

The Archaeological Museum of Asturias in Oviedo is housed in the 16th-century cloister of the former Benedictine monastery of San Vicente. The monastery has a complex history closely linked to the origin of the city itself.

The monastery was established in 761, during the reign of Fruela I. To date, only a few remnants of its original building have survived. Among them is the cloister, declared a national monument in 1934. Begun in the 1530s, under the direction of master builder Juan de Badajoz el Mozo (“the Younger”), it was completed by Juan de Cerecedo el Viejo (“the Elder”) and Juan de Cerecedo el Mozo (“the Younger”) in the 1570s.

The museum has occupied the cloister since 1952. Dedicated to recounting the history of the Asturian region, its permanent collection includes findings spanning from prehistoric times to the Middle Ages. In 1998, in view of the deficient state of the museum building, the Ministry of Culture commenced proceedings for its rehabilitation and expansion. During those works, the discovery of a bastion, believed to be part of the ancient wall erected during the time of Alfonso II of Asturias, in the 8th century, was made.