The Palace that has been home to the National Museum since 1892 was donated to the Prince-Regent John VI by

Portuguese merchant Elias Antonio Lopes in 1818. After the collapse of the Brazilian Empire, it was used as a barracks, then a school, and finally became the seat of the Assembly that drew up the first Constitution of the Brazilian Republic. Its attractions include fossil skeletons of pre-historic animals and Etruscan ceramics, as well as Egyptian mummies and sarcophagi, together with indigenous weapons and objects, stuffed animals and minerals from all over the world. Part of this collection belonged to Emperor Pedro II, who was a botanist, and his wife the Empress Teresa Cristina, an archeologist. This Museum also has a nursery garden covering 40,000 m2 and a library specializing in the natural and anthropological sciences with 442,000 volumes.

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