Museo Etnográfico Andrés Barbero
Paraguay's leading museum dedicated to its indigenous cultures
About Museo Etnográfico Andrés Barbero
The museum was founded on June 21, 1929, on the initiative of physician and philanthropist Dr. Andrés Barbero, who drove its creation from the presidency of the Paraguayan Scientific Society. It was inaugurated on November 28, 1933, and is currently managed by the "La Piedad" Foundation, a civil charity and cultural organization that oversees the Barbero family's estate. Since 1956 it has operated in its current headquarters, on España Street.
Between 1934 and 1946, German anthropologist Max Schmidt served as director, carrying out the first systematic study of prehistoric findings in Paraguay and research trips to various indigenous peoples of the Chaco. After the deaths of Barbero and Schmidt, the museum went through a period of neglect until 1952, when anthropologist Branislava Sušnik took over its direction and reorganization, expanding the collections through new field trips among the country's indigenous peoples.
The collection brings together archaeological and ethnographic holdings from different ethnic groups of Paraguay — among them the Mataco, Guaykuru, Guayakí, Maskoy, and Emok peoples — with musical instruments, weapons, funerary urns, tools, and ceremonial altars, as well as more than two thousand documentary photographs of indigenous life, including records of religious ceremonies. It also has a library specializing in anthropology.
Opening Hours
- Monday 08:00–17:00
- Tuesday 08:00–17:00
- Wednesday 08:00–17:00
- Thursday 08:00–17:00
- Friday Today 08:00–17:00
- Saturday Closed
- Sunday Closed
Services
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