MUNA National Museum

MUNA, the Museo Nacional del Perú, is a very large modern building next to the Pachacamac sanctuary in Lurín, built to consolidate the state's archaeological collections and to give Peru a national museum on the scale its heritage warrants. It opened in stages from 2021, and material has transferred into it from the older Lima museums, including major pieces from Chavín, Paracas, Moche, Wari and Inca contexts. The building is deliberately monumental, a long concrete structure with ramps and terraces designed to relate to the huacas beside it. The project has been controversial - cost, delays, changes of direction across administrations, and arguments about moving objects out of the institutions that held them - and parts of the programme have opened later than planned. Visiting works best combined with Pachacamac itself, immediately alongside, and it is well outside central Lima.

History

José de San Martín first proposed a national museum, library and archive in 1822, and the idea was taken up again in 2013 by the Minister of Culture Diana Álvarez Calderón. Bidding for the design opened in May 2014 and was won by the architect Alexia León Ángel, whose building lies about 70% below ground; the museum opened in July 2021 as part of Peru's bicentennial (Wikipedia, National Museum of Peru).

What to look for

• The collections - major Chavín, Paracas, Moche, Wari and Inca material transferred here.
• The building - a monumental modern structure relating to the huacas beside it.
• The Pachacamac setting - the sanctuary immediately adjacent.
• The consolidation - the state's principal archaeological holdings under one roof.

When to go

Year-round. Two to four hours, or a full day combined with Pachacamac next door. Check which galleries are open - the museum has opened in phases.

What to expect

Well outside central Lima; allow an hour each way in traffic. Some galleries and services are still incomplete. The scale means a lot of walking. Coastal cloud makes the setting grey from June to October.

Nearby

Pachacamac is immediately alongside; Lurín and the southern beaches are nearby.

Key facts