Description:
The project for the recovery of the Roman Theatre of Cartagena called for the integration of the ruins in the existing urban layout as well as their proper conservation and exhibition for educational and cultural purposes. In addition, the considerable value of the pieces discovered in the theatre during various excavation campaigns presented a window of opportunity to endow the city with a new museum space. The Roman Theatre Museum is more than just an ideal showcase for these pieces; thanks to a brilliant design by the architect, Rafael Moneo, it has also become a new conduit through the city, taking visitors from Plaza del Ayuntamiento (City Hall Square) to the very heart of the monument. This new museum space, whose entrance is located opposite Cartagena City Hall, occupies two separate buildings joined by an underground corridor-cum-exhibition gallery that cleverly links the various topographic levels found in this area of the city. Thus, it seemed only logical to include the Pascual de Riquelme Palace and the archaeological crypt of the Church of Santa María la Vieja in the complex, making the Roman theatre the museum's final and most remarkable exhibit.