Dom Diogo de Sousa Museum

Dom Diogo de Sousa Museum in Braga is an archaeology museum in northern Portugal that traces the city's story from prehistory to the early Middle Ages. It stands in the heart of what was once the Roman city of Bracara Augusta, so a visit means exploring the very layers of history that lie beneath Braga's streets today.

What is the Dom Diogo de Sousa Museum?

It is an archaeological museum founded in 1918. It is named after Diogo de Sousa, Archbishop of Braga from 1505 to 1532, remembered as a major patron and reformer of the city. Since 29 June 2007 the collection has been displayed in a modern building designed specifically for it, in the city centre.

What is in the collection?

The collection consists mostly of finds from excavations carried out in Braga and its surroundings. It spans a very long period, from the Palaeolithic through Roman rule to the Suevi-Visigothic kingdom of the 5th to 7th centuries. Across four exhibition rooms you can see, among other things:

• arrowheads, funerary objects and pottery from prehistoric times,
• Roman tombstones and everyday objects used by the people of Bracara Augusta,
• artefacts from the Suevi and Visigothic era.

What makes it stand out?

The museum is regarded as holding one of the best collections of milliaries in Europe. These are Roman milestones, stone columns that marked distances along imperial roads. They show how important a crossroads Bracara Augusta was. For anyone curious about Roman roads, this is one of the most interesting parts of the visit.

Why visit?

Braga is one of the oldest cities in Portugal, and the museum helps you understand where it came from. The display is chronological, so it is easy to follow how life in the region changed over thousands of years. Its central location makes it simple to combine with a walk through historic Braga and visits to the city's other landmarks.

Frequently asked questions

Where is the museum? In central Braga, on the site of the former Roman city of Bracara Augusta. The coordinates are roughly 41.5463 N, 8.4275 W.

When was it founded? In 1918. It moved into its current building in June 2007.

Who is it named after? Diogo de Sousa, Archbishop of Braga between 1505 and 1532.

Which periods does the exhibition cover? From the Palaeolithic, through the Roman period, to the Suevi and Visigoths in the 5th to 7th centuries.

What is the best-known part of the collection? The Roman milliaries, considered among the best collections of their kind in Europe.

Is it a good stop for history lovers? Yes. The museum gathers finds from excavations in Braga itself, so it tells the story of this particular city and region rather than offering a generic overview. It helps explain why Braga mattered so much in the north of the Iberian Peninsula for centuries, and it works well as an introduction before exploring the streets where some of the displayed objects were found.