They may not have the prestige of the Picasso museum, or the extensive collection of the Museu National d’Art de Catalunya, but Barcelona has many smaller and lesser-known museums worth visiting. This collection of museums spans all of history, with art, artifacts and insight into what makes Barcelona such a great city to visit. Here are five museums to visit:(1) The Barcelona history museum, with its extensive Roman ruins and medieval chapel(2) the Frederic Mares museum, with its displays of a lifetime of collecting from one of Barcelona's top sculptors(3) The Chocolate museum, with its combination of history, artistry, and mastery of chocolate on display(4) Tapies Foundation, with its ever-changing exhibits of Barcelona's greatest 20th century artist(5) The Egyptian Museum, with its ancient artifacts and educational displays.
Museu d'Historia de BarcelonaBarcelona History MuseumArchaeology buffs should flock to the main location of this museum, which has one of the largest underground excavations of Roman ruins in the world. After displays showing the history of Roman Barcelona, the elevator takes you downstairs to the archaeological subsoil. Following the audio guide, you get not only the physical descriptions of the ruins themselves, but also a guide to how people lived in the ancient Roman city of Barcino, and onward, with excavations of buildings up to the 14th century.Above ground is the Palau Reial, the former residence of the kings of Catalonia. It has been turned into a museum, with artifacts from the excavations only being part of the story.