Last Thursday 11 July the Museum of Roman Theatre in Cartagena celebrated its 5th birthday. In this time it has become an important cultural landmark and tourist attraction both of the town and of the Region of Murcia.
Already more than 690,000 people have visited the museum making it the most popular museum in the region, and one of the most visited nationwide. With the more frequent arrival of cruise ships and the increase of congress tourism 2013 saw the number of visitors improve by 12 per cent with 42% of all visitors coming from abroad.
The tour of the site begins at the Museum itself, whose entrance is located at the Town Hall Square in front of the Ayuntamiento.
The visitor first steps into the corridor of history where the evolution of the solar urban theatre from the twenty-first century to the first century is explained. It displays the archaeological objects recovered during the excavation, drawings, photographs and audio-visual pieces, the history of the area from the XVIII to XX centuries, followed by the old quarter, centuries XVI to XVII, the Arabic district called Qartayanna Al Halfa, the ancient Byzantine port, destroyed by Suintila in 625, and her transformation of the theater.
The exhibition of plates, jugs, pots and other everyday objects discovered on digs allows us to get a glimpse of the lives if the inhabitants of a neighbourhood that, throughout history, was always part of the city, and experienced periods of prosperity and decadence.
At the end of the corridor, and through a virtual recreation, visitors will then come to understand how the development of the neighbourhood throughout history deleted all trace of the Roman Theatre until its excavation.
The archaeological work conducted from 1990 to the present has allowed exceptional knowledge and understanding of the significance of the building architecture and built in the late first century BC shows Its location in one of the highest hills around the city resulting in the construction of the cavea, which at its center appears carved into the rock of the mountain.
The theater, with a capacity of 7000 spectators, has been restored for the enjoyment of visitors, as well as for preservation and exhibition of educational and cultural purposes. The area inside the monument is designed to incorporate great the halls of and radial stairs that allow space down to the orchestra and the stage, displaying the partial restoration of the front stage.
In addition, visitors can enjoy many temporary exhibitions which are changing on a regular basis during the summer months. There are currently art and jewellery exhibitions which have been inspired by the old Mediterranean myths as well as a craft display of work by Angeles Morejon in which metal work has forged his career for over 30 years.
Also during the summer months the Roman Theatre Museum has scheduled a series of special events and open air performances for all audiences so if you are looking for a day out in the coming weeks you can find all of the detail of the museum, its exhibitions and the many planned events in English on the excellent website at www.teatroromanocartagena.org
Filed under: http://www.theleader.info/article/39866/
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