Navy Museum, Maritime museum in Belém, Portugal
The Navy Museum in Belém is a repository of maritime history objects, showcasing ships, navigation, and everything connected to seafaring life. The building occupies a wing of the Jerónimos Monastery and displays thousands of artifacts spanning multiple centuries.
King Luís I, an accomplished navigator, decreed in 1863 the creation of a collection of items documenting Portuguese maritime activity. After decades of growth, the museum opened in its present home in 1963, having previously occupied the palace of the Counts of Farrobo in Laranjeiras from 1949 to 1962. It now fills the north and west wings of the Jerónimos Monastery.
The museum's name, Museu de Marinha, refers to the Portuguese Navy, which administers it through the Comissão Cultural de Marinha. Its collection of over 20,000 items includes ship models from the Age of Discovery to the 19th century, along with weapons, uniforms, navigation instruments and charts. The Pavilhão das Galeotas, built in the late 1950s to a design by Frederico George, was the first building in Portugal constructed from scratch to house museum collections.
Access is through the Jerónimos Monastery complex, and you can explore the collection in a couple of hours since the layout is straightforward. Wear comfortable shoes since the exhibition spans multiple levels and rooms.
The Fairey III "Santa Cruz" on display crossed the South Atlantic from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro in 1923, not 1922. It hangs among ship models and navigation instruments, beside the Portuguese Navy's first aircraft, an FBA Type B flying boat. Together the two machines trace the navy's move from sail and steam into the air.
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