Museu Arqueológico do Carmo
Museu Arqueológico do Carmo
Museu Arqueológico do Carmo
4.4
Monday
10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Sunday
Closed
About
The Carmo Archaeological Museum is situated in the ruins of the old Church of Santa Maria do Carmo, founded in 1389 by D. Nuno Alvares Pereira. This church was known as one of the most beautiful Gothic temples in Lisbon until the earthquake of 1755, which caused serious damage to the building and destroyed almost all of its religious-artistic contents. Its re-construction began in an experimental Gothic style in 1756 and stopped in 1834, when the religious orders were abolished in Portugal. In 1863, royal architect, Joaquim Possidonio da Silva, founded the Portuguese Civil Architects Association. About one year later, in 1864, the Carmo Archaeological Museum was installed there for the storage and display of important sculptures from old ruined buildings. Curing the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. the museum houses a collection which dates from Pre-History to the present day and shows the way people have thought and felt in different areas of culture throughout the ages.
Duration: < 1 hour
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingTours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
What is Travellers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Plan your visit
Are you currently on your trip?
Help us find experiences available for you.
The area
Address
Neighbourhood: Chiado & Carmo
The traditionally trendy "Chiado" (literally, "squeak", the nickname of a 16th century poet) offers plenty of cafes, restaurants and bars where you can stop for a cafe or cocktail, after exploring its streets, shops, art galleries, theaters, museums and viewpoints. It's also the home to the statue of the famous statue of portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa, having is usual espresso at "A Brasileira" as he used to. You can also enjoy breathtaking views of Lisbon from the Elevador de Santa Justa or the Carmo Convent, for example. A commercial neighborhood at its core, especially for its Garrett and Carmo streets, Chiado is to this day a mandatory visit in Lisbon.
How to get there
- Baixa/Chiado • 3 min walk
- Rossio • 3 min walk
Reach out directly
Best nearby
We rank these restaurants and attractions by balancing reviews from our members with how close they are to this location.
Restaurants
5,207 within 5 kms
Attractions
1,018 within 10 kms
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
We perform checks on reviews.
Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews
Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
Learn more about our review moderation.
4.4
2,947 reviews
Excellent
1,580
Very good
1,081
Average
232
Poor
40
Terrible
14
These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
This service may contain translations provided by Google. Google disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to translations, including any warranties of accuracy, reliability, and any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and freedom from forgery.
Mais
122 contributions
Feb 2025 • Couples
This is something you must do when in Lisbon. Such a beautiful church partially destroyed by earthquake and has remained with no roof. Entry is reasonable and will take probably an hour to explore the building, the parts in the rooms at the back have some interesting artefacts including mummies and tombs. Look out for the very cute and friendly resident cat. There is also free toilets inside so bare this in mind if you are visiting as the ones outside are 50 cents
Written 16 February 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
claudio d
Viterbo, Italy45,384 contributions
Apr 2024 • Couples
It can be visited with a single ticket which also gives access to the convent church of the former Carmo convent, the church without a roof so to speak. The museum exhibition begins from the uncovered naves of the church (in this case obviously only stone artefacts are concerned, given that they are subject to the elements) and then continues in the internal rooms of the apses and the sacristy, which have preserved the roofs. It is an eclectic collection, which brings together objects of various types, dates and origins (a multimedia film on the history of the convent is projected in the sacristy): the collection of stone objects is very significant, including valuable sarcophagi from various periods (including that of King Fernando I), the 13th century bust of King Afonso Henriques, statues (also in other materials other than stone), steles, tombstones, coats of arms and bas-reliefs, fountains, wells and windows; then azulejos, books, various antiques, and even an Egyptian sarcophagus and two Peruvian mummies.
Written 4 May 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Matthew R
54 contributions
Oct 2024 • Couples
Definitely recommend. There is not a ton to see, but the inside view of the church with open air ceiling is breathtaking and most definitely worth the admission cost so you can get pictures. There is also a small museum on the far side of the cathedral which houses interesting historical pieces including a mummy, historical books and many relics. There is also a small theatre where they play a documentary movie about the history of the place.
Written 7 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Herbert C
1,948 contributions
Dec 2024 • Friends
The Carmo Convent is a Gothic building from the late 14th century that was partially destroyed by the 1755 earthquake. It is located in front of Carmo Square in close proximity to the Santa Justa Lift. Apart from housing an archaeological museum that features relics from prehistoric times through to the medieval ages, what's more amazing about this attraction is visitors can now see the wonderfully preserved ruined main nave of the Carmo Church. It's a shame that this attraction is not included in the Lisboa Card, which only entitles visitors to a 20% discounted entry. Nevertheless, it's still a worthwhile stopover when you're in the Chiado neighbourhood.
Written 26 February 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Unavid
Elizabethtown65 contributions
Sept 2024 • Solo
At first glance, you might think that Carmo isn't worth visiting- after all, it seems to be missing some fairly important pieces like, say, a roof. I assure you, Carmo is well worth a visit. Despite the obvious damage (sustained in the 1755 earthquake that basically levelled Lisbon), Carmo is architecturally stunning with the arches and flying buttresses standing out beautifully against the sky. The museum is full of interesting artifacts and there is a short film describing the history of the site from its construction up to the present day. It may lack a bit of grandeur compared to San Jeronimo monastery (a must see), but it has a charm unmatched by any other site you are likely to visit. If you are spending more than 2 days in Lisbon, I strongly advise you to include Carmo in your plans.
Written 13 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Arthur M
Hamilton, Canada1,808 contributions
Dec 2024 • Solo
This was actually a nice use of a cathedral in ruins, an archaeological museum! Since the museum is pretty much open-air (with exhibits located at the rear of the cathedral), it's pretty different from a typical museum! The exhibits were pretty interesting, including a mummy!
Outside, you would see a cat roaming, and based on the gift shop's souvenir magnets, he seems to be a popular attraction too! They have pictures of him as fridge magnets! Don't forget to look for him!
Outside, you would see a cat roaming, and based on the gift shop's souvenir magnets, he seems to be a popular attraction too! They have pictures of him as fridge magnets! Don't forget to look for him!
Written 16 March 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jbg74
Saint Paul, MN1,194 contributions
Nov 2024 • Family
This is an awesome ruined Gothic church and monastery. It was damaged during the famous Lisbon earthquake of 1755. The ruined church makes for some great photos. There is a small museum in the attached convent buildings with items from the church and a few other collections from the man who saved the ruin and established it as a museum. This is definitely worth visiting.
Written 17 November 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Albert_MH
Tokyo Prefecture, Japan351 contributions
Apr 2024 • Solo
It was originally a Carmelite monastery built in the 14th century. However, the great Lisbon earthquake of 1755 destroyed most of the monastery and church, leaving only columns and walls. Today, it is a place that conveys the horror of the earthquake, and the altar, whose roof remains intact, is an archaeological museum.
The part of the chapel where the roof collapsed contains reliefs and sacred images of noble coats of arms, while the archaeological museum contains pottery and South American archaeological exhibits. The museum is small but worth seeing.
The part of the chapel where the roof collapsed contains reliefs and sacred images of noble coats of arms, while the archaeological museum contains pottery and South American archaeological exhibits. The museum is small but worth seeing.
Automatically translated
Written 8 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Juanita C
106 contributions
Sept 2024 • Solo
Please do yourself a favor and enjoy this beautiful, beautiful Museum. I have been to many museums but this is the first that brought me to tears. For several years I read the history of devastating Lisbon earthquake of 1755 and the horrifying aftermath (tsunami and fire) that followed. After purchasing my ticket I entered the "museum" which was actually entering into what had been the beautiful church that welcomed worshipers on that fateful day: November1, 1755. I was met with absolute SILENCE! There were 20-25 people sitting on the steps in quiet contemplation, there was silence, a rare whisper could be detected. I can only describe what I experienced as a respect and reverence--perhaps for the events of Nov. 1st, 1755? I don't know.
There are beautiful, well-marked exhibits as you venture further--don't miss those-- and a wonderful gift shop/museum shop.
There are beautiful, well-marked exhibits as you venture further--don't miss those-- and a wonderful gift shop/museum shop.
Written 8 January 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bertie1224
Northamptonshire, UK1,446 contributions
May 2024 • Couples
This is worth visiting. It has a feeling of Coventry cathedral but here the damage was a natural disaster in the form of an earthquake. It must have been a truly amazing building with superb vaulted ceilings. The arches that remain are a true spectacle as you look up to a clear blue sky. There are numerous tombs to read about as you navigate the structure. It really is a fascinating space and worth a visit, and the black and white cat seemed to agree! We just bought tickets at the door and went straight in.
Written 31 May 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Con la lisboa Card tiene descuento la entrada en 2019?
Written 9 July 2019
We are considering going to see Lisbon Under the Stars on a Thursday in July for the show at 21:30. We are staying at The Corinthia Hotel located at Av. Columbano Bordalo Pinheiro 105, 1099-031. When the show ends after approximately 40 to 45 minutes will it be difficult to get back to our hotel? Will we be able to get a taxi or do you suggest a bus or train? Thank you for any assistance or advise.
Written 26 June 2019
We used Uber in Lisbon and it was great because the possible language problem was abrogated by the app. We also found Lisbon very walkable but do not know where these locations are
Written 27 June 2019
Unfortunately not! You’ve to buy it there. Important to call before because the museum would close for repairs.
Written 11 June 2019
C’è bisogno di prenotare anticipatamente o va bene andare direttamente?
Written 12 March 2019
Io sono andata direttamente all’apertura e non c’era coda
Written 12 March 2019
Are there any concerts in the museum from the 16 th July - 20 th July
Thankyou
Written 15 July 2018
Sorry I can't answer your question. I do not know the concert schedule for july
Written 15 July 2018
L'ELEADOR DE SANTA JUSTA è gratuito con il biglietto giornaliero da 6 euro? Grazie
Written 21 March 2017
Si. Il biglietto giornaliero di 6€ comprende la salita all'elevador. Arrivato in cima se vuoi salire con una scaletta sulla terrazza panoramica devi pagare 1,50€.
Written 22 March 2017
Weiß jemand, warum und wie Convento Do Carmo zu den vielen ca. 20cm Durchmesser Bohrungen kommt, die außen zu sehen sind und kreuz und quer durch die Wände und Sockel verlaufen und teilweise zu zementiert sind?
Written 19 March 2017
Dear Frank, The 20cm wide holes that you can still see around the walls of the old church of Carmo, in Lisbon, are the result of the 150 poles, 20m long, made of steel and filled with concrete, that were placed in 1996 to protect the monument from the impact of the building of the two new underground lines of the Lisbon Metropolitan, at the depth of 20 and 30m, respectively.
They are rather anaesthetic, but so far they have worked well...Yours sincerely, J.M. Arnaud (Museum Director).
Written 19 March 2017
L'ingresso alla chiesa è ancora gratuito?
Written 15 March 2017
La visita della chiesa è a pagamento e comprende anche il museo. Non è possibile visitare solo la chiesa. Ci sono stato in dicembre 2016 e il prezzo di ingresso era 3.50€, scontato a 2.80€ con Lisboa Card. Orario invernale 10 -18, estivo 10 - 19. Chiuso la domenica. Ho postato una foto, tra poco on line sulla mia recensione, che ho fatto alla biglietteria dove sono presenti tutte le informazioni di ingresso.
Written 18 March 2017
Showing results 1-10 of 16
Related Stories
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing