Numismatic Collection, National Art Museum of Catalonia

The Numismatic Cabinet of Catalonia, created in 1932, has a collection of over 134,000 copies. The fund is the result of a long process of acquisition, donation, legacy or deposit, which began in the first half of the nineteenth century and still continues.

The coin collection consists of nearly 100,000 pieces, of which the main numismatic series are represented, with units manufactured from the 6th century BC onward. The most important and emblematic coins are, without a doubt, those issued in Catalonia, with a large number of copies of extraordinary rarity and unique pieces.

The collections begin with the emissions of ancient times, among which are the minting in the Iberian Peninsula, with pieces as significant as those of the Greek colonies of Empúries and Rhode, or the treasure of 897 fractions of silver found. in Emporion’s Naples. From the transition from the ancient to the medieval world is the collection of Visigothic coins, with broadcasts from workshops in Catalonia,, Tarraco or Gerunda. Many of the Christian kingdoms of the medieval West are present in the European kingdoms, although the Catalan currency and the Crown of Aragon are the most prominent, with units showing, step by step, the evolution historical and economic of these territories. For example, the economic growth of the thirteenth century is documented by the beginning of the minting of silver crusaders in Barcelona in the name of Peter II. Emissions of modern and contemporary times include the minting of three periods as significant as the War of the Reapers, the War of the Spanish Succession and the French War.

The collection of medals consists of more than 9,000 pieces, ranging from the first specimens made in Italy during the second half of the 15th century to the present. The main part of the collection is made up of pieces produced in Spain, largely by well-known artists and engravers, who created medals of very remarkable quality. Thus, there is a good representation of medals made by masters of the eighteenth century as important as Tomás Francisco Prieto or Gerónimo Antonio Gil. At the end of the 19th century, especially since the Barcelona Universal Exposition of 1888, joined the creation of modernist sculptor medals, which gave rise to a splendid period in medal art, especially in Catalonia, as reflected in the Cabinet collection. The most important figure was Eusebi Arnau ‘s, but they also created high quality pieces by sculptors such as Parera, Blay, Limon or Gargallo.

The central core of the paper-value collection, which covers a wide range of different types of documents, is the banknote fund, with 4,100 copies. Highlights include the Spanish series containing emissions from the Bank of Spain from 1874 to the present and the number of paper value issued by the Government of Catalonia and the Catalan municipalities during the Spanish Civil War.

The Cabinet also guards pieces of various types that have great interest in their connection, directly or indirectly, with numismatics. These funds include, among others, manufacturing tools, monetary pesos, scales, jets, pellets, chips, stamps, decorations and various documentary collections.

The formation of this fund began thanks to a donation by Josep Salat to the Barcelona Board of Trade in the early nineteenth century. Years later, the Board of Trade donated this fund to the former Provincial Museum of Antiquities. After several locations, it was located for a few years at the Palau de la Virreina and finally at the MNAC.

Cabinet collections are complemented by the largest library in the field in the state, with more than 6,000 copies dealing with different aspects of numismatics.

National Art Museum of Catalonia
The National Art Museum of Catalonia, also known by its acronym MNAC, is a museum of art in the city of Barcelona which brings together all the arts whose mission is to preserve and exhibit the collection of Catalan art ‘s most important world, showing everything from Romanesque to the present. Its current director is Josep Serra.

The MNAC is a consortium with its own legal personality constituted by the Generalitat de Catalunya, the Barcelona City Council and the General State Administration. In addition to the public administrations, individuals and private entities collaborating with the administration are represented on the museum’s board of trustees.

The main headquarters are located in the National Palace of Montjuïc, opened in 1929 on the occasion of the International Exhibition. Three other institutions are also part of the museum as a whole: the Víctor Balaguer Museum Library in Vilanova i la Geltrú, the Garrotxa Museum in Olot and the Cau Ferrat Museum in Sitges, whose management is independent and its ownership is based on the respective councils.