Discover More Than 10 Museums in Piura, Peru
There are plenty of interesting things to see and do in Piura and its surrounding area, including an eclectic assortment of museums covering everything from pre-Columbian cultures to colonial art and naval history.
The following list includes museums in the city of Piura and the wider Piura Region (see regions map).
The Museo Municipal Vicús exhibits archaeological pieces from the Vicús culture, an influential civilization that existed in the Piura region sometime between 1000 BC and 600 AD. The Vicús were skilled in the fashioning of ceramic, copper and gold items, a fact reflected in the museum collection. The Sala de Oro (Gold Room) is a particular highlight.
The Casa Museo Gran Almirante Grau was once the family home of arguably Peru’s greatest military hero, Miguel Grau Seminario (1834 to 1879). Grau gave his life defending Peru during the War of the Pacific, but only after earning himself a reputation as both a great admiral and a gentleman. The museum contains artifacts once belonging to Grau, as well as a scale model of Grau’s famous ship, the Huascar.
Piura’s Museum of Religious Art is located in the eighteenth century Church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen. The interior contains various works of religious art, many considered among the finest examples on the north coast of Peru, including altars, sculptures, furniture and paintings from the Quito School.
The Banco Central de Reserva del Perú (BCRP) runs a few museums in Peru, including a currency museum in Lima. The Piura branch – the Exhibition Room of the BCRP – is more than just a money and finance museum. There are old Peruvian banknotes, including very rare Banco de Piura notes from the 1870s, as well as archaeological artifacts such as ceramics from the Vicús culture.
This is the on-site museum for the Huaca Narihualá archaeological site, notable for its two truncated pyramids. The collection contains artifacts from the excavation of the site, including textiles, metalwork, ceramics, examples of adobe bricks and a Peruvian Hairless dog that was used as a funerary offering.
The Museum of Ethnology in the town of Sechura details the development of the local area from its ancient inhabitants to the more modern history of Sechura itself. The collection includes burial and ceremonial items from the Chusis culture, fishing tools (and a replica boat) used by pre-Columbian fisherman along the nearby coast, and old photographs of Sechura.
English archaeologist Ross Albert Christensen discovered the site of Chusis in 1950. The site is believed to have been the administrative and ceremonial center for the Chusis culture that existed at about the same time as the Mochica and Vicús. The museums contains some interesting pieces found during the excavation of the site, including two funeral urns, one containing the body of a male warrior and the other a Chusis female.
The Museo de Sullana (formerly the Museo de la Cultura “José Arens Berg”) was opened in 1997 and is now managed by the local municipality. The collection contains artifacts from various former inhabitants of the region, including ceramics and metalwork from the Vicús culture and items from the Tallán of the Chira Valley. There is also an exhibition of old photos of Sullana.
The Museo Elba Aranda de Sarango exhibits terrestrial, fluvial and marine fossils found in the region, a region that was once a marine environment but has since become a desert. Notable items on display include a partial whale skeleton, shark teeth, large oysters, caimans, capybaras and turtles. There are also fossils from the Pleistocene period, including mastodon skulls of the genera Cuvieronius, Macrauchenias and Megatherium (giant sloth).
The Hijos del Sol Archaeology Museum is located in the town of Ayabaca in the northeast of the Piura Region (very close to the border with Ecuador). The museum contains more than 1,000 artifacts – including ceramics and metalwork -- from the Ayabaca culture as well as later inhabitants of the area. You’ll also find photographs and information about the various archaeological sites in the Ayabaca Province.
The following list includes museums in the city of Piura and the wider Piura Region (see regions map).
Museo Municipal Vicús
The Museo Municipal Vicús exhibits archaeological pieces from the Vicús culture, an influential civilization that existed in the Piura region sometime between 1000 BC and 600 AD. The Vicús were skilled in the fashioning of ceramic, copper and gold items, a fact reflected in the museum collection. The Sala de Oro (Gold Room) is a particular highlight.
- Address: Corner of Av. Sullana and Jr. Huánuco, Piura
- Hours: Tuesday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Entrance: S/.4
- Phone: (51-73) 30-2803
- Email: piura@mcultura.gob.pe
- Website: www3.munipiura.gob.pe/eculturad/museo.html
Casa Museo Gran Almirante Grau
The Casa Museo Gran Almirante Grau was once the family home of arguably Peru’s greatest military hero, Miguel Grau Seminario (1834 to 1879). Grau gave his life defending Peru during the War of the Pacific, but only after earning himself a reputation as both a great admiral and a gentleman. The museum contains artifacts once belonging to Grau, as well as a scale model of Grau’s famous ship, the Huascar.
- Address: Calle Tacna 662 (near Piura’s Plaza de Armas)
- Hours: Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. until 6 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to midday
- Entrance: free, but there is a donations box
- Phone: (51-73) 32-6541
- Website: none
Museo de Arte Religioso de Piura
Piura’s Museum of Religious Art is located in the eighteenth century Church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen. The interior contains various works of religious art, many considered among the finest examples on the north coast of Peru, including altars, sculptures, furniture and paintings from the Quito School.
- Address: Jr. Libertad 366, Plazuela Merino, Piura
- Hours: Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Entrance: S/.2
- Website: none
Sala de Exhibición del Banco Central de Reserva del Perú
The Banco Central de Reserva del Perú (BCRP) runs a few museums in Peru, including a currency museum in Lima. The Piura branch – the Exhibition Room of the BCRP – is more than just a money and finance museum. There are old Peruvian banknotes, including very rare Banco de Piura notes from the 1870s, as well as archaeological artifacts such as ceramics from the Vicús culture.
- Address: Jr. Libertad 762, Piura
- Hours: by prior arrangement
- Entrance: free
- Phone: (51-74) 33-3140
- Email: sucursal.piura@bcrp.gob.pe
- Website: none
Museo de Sitio de Narihualá
This is the on-site museum for the Huaca Narihualá archaeological site, notable for its two truncated pyramids. The collection contains artifacts from the excavation of the site, including textiles, metalwork, ceramics, examples of adobe bricks and a Peruvian Hairless dog that was used as a funerary offering.
- Address: Caserío de Narihualá, Catacaos (a few miles from the city of Piura), Piura Region
- Hours: Tuesday to Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Entrance: S/.2
- Phone: (51-73) 30-5178
- Website: none
Museo de Etnología de Sechura
The Museum of Ethnology in the town of Sechura details the development of the local area from its ancient inhabitants to the more modern history of Sechura itself. The collection includes burial and ceremonial items from the Chusis culture, fishing tools (and a replica boat) used by pre-Columbian fisherman along the nearby coast, and old photographs of Sechura.
- Address: the museum is located inside the Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Monastery, Plazuela Juan Pablo II, Sechura (about 30 miles south of the city of Piura)
- Hours: every day from 10 a.m. to midday and 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
- Entrance: free
- Phone: (51-73) 37-7271
- Website: none
Museo Chusis
English archaeologist Ross Albert Christensen discovered the site of Chusis in 1950. The site is believed to have been the administrative and ceremonial center for the Chusis culture that existed at about the same time as the Mochica and Vicús. The museums contains some interesting pieces found during the excavation of the site, including two funeral urns, one containing the body of a male warrior and the other a Chusis female.
- Address: located along the Sechura-Piura highway in the Sechura Province of the Piura Region
- Hours: Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Entrance: free
- Phone: (51-73) 37-7096
- Website: none
Museo de Sullana
The Museo de Sullana (formerly the Museo de la Cultura “José Arens Berg”) was opened in 1997 and is now managed by the local municipality. The collection contains artifacts from various former inhabitants of the region, including ceramics and metalwork from the Vicús culture and items from the Tallán of the Chira Valley. There is also an exhibition of old photos of Sullana.
- Address: Centro de Convenciones de Sullana, Plaza de Armas of Sullana (about 24 miles from the city of Piura)
- Hours: Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
- Entrance: free
- Phone: (51-73) 50-2138
- Website: none
Museo Elba Aranda de Sarango
The Museo Elba Aranda de Sarango exhibits terrestrial, fluvial and marine fossils found in the region, a region that was once a marine environment but has since become a desert. Notable items on display include a partial whale skeleton, shark teeth, large oysters, caimans, capybaras and turtles. There are also fossils from the Pleistocene period, including mastodon skulls of the genera Cuvieronius, Macrauchenias and Megatherium (giant sloth).
- Address: Villa Santa Ana, La Huaca, km 30.9 of the Sullana-Paita Highway, Piura Region
- Hours: Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to midday and 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.
- Entrance: free
- Phone: (51-73) 79-5021
- Email: mueas-lahuaca@hotmail.com or jaimesarango51@hotmail.com
- Website: http://mueas.blogspot.com
Museo Arqueológico Hijos del Sol
The Hijos del Sol Archaeology Museum is located in the town of Ayabaca in the northeast of the Piura Region (very close to the border with Ecuador). The museum contains more than 1,000 artifacts – including ceramics and metalwork -- from the Ayabaca culture as well as later inhabitants of the area. You’ll also find photographs and information about the various archaeological sites in the Ayabaca Province.
- Address: Calle Cáceres 468 (second floor), Ayabaca, Piura Region
- Hours: seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
- Entrance: free
- Website: none