Museum of the Orient, Art museum in Estrela, Portugal.
The Museum of the Orient is an art museum in the Estrela neighborhood of Lisbon, housed inside a former riverside warehouse that was converted and reopened in 2008. Spread across six floors, it holds collections of Asian art and everyday objects tied to Portugal's historical presence in Asia.
The building was constructed in the 1940s to store dried cod and served that purpose for decades before losing its industrial use. In the early 2000s it was converted by the Oriente Foundation and opened as a museum in 2008.
The museum displays objects collected during the Portuguese trading era, including masks, costumes, and items connected to performing arts from across Asia. Walking through the rooms, visitors can notice how deeply the ties between Portugal and Asia shaped the everyday life of both cultures.
The museum sits near the Tagus riverfront in Estrela and can be reached on foot from several public transport stops in the area. Visitors should plan enough time to move through all six floors, as the range of objects on display rewards a slow and attentive visit.
The museum holds one of the largest collections of Chinese lacquer screens in Europe, with panels depicting scenes from the Ming and Qing dynasty courts. These screens arrived in Europe as trade goods exchanged between Portugal and China over several centuries.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
