Museu Nacional, History museum in Quinta da Boa Vista, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Museu Nacional is a historic research institute within Quinta da Boa Vista park in São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The complex consists of a former imperial palace in neoclassical style that overlooks a wide lawn with mature trees and public pathways.
King João VI of Portugal founded the institution in 1818 as a royal collection and research center during his time in exile in Rio de Janeiro. The palace later became the official residence of the Brazilian imperial family until 1889 and housed scientific departments after the republic.
The museum's name comes from its 1818 founding as the Royal Museum by King João VI; locals first knew its bird specimens as the Casa dos Pássaros, the House of the Birds. Its journal, the Archivos do Museu Nacional, has been published since 1876, the oldest Brazilian scientific periodical in the natural sciences. Since 2022 the restored facade and terrace garden have reopened, and in 2025 three restored interior rooms hosted the exhibition "Entre Gigantes".
The site undergoes extensive reconstruction work managed by the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro following the September 2018 fire. Visitors can enter the surrounding park and view the outer architecture from the lawn while interior spaces are being restored.
Archaeological excavations after the fire uncovered thousands of imperial artifacts near the Rio de Janeiro Zoological Garden, including personal items from the Brazilian royal family. The recovery of these pieces helped restore parts of the collection and offered fresh understanding of daily life in the palace.
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