ABOUT MAPI

Welcome to the Museum of Pre-Columbian and Indigenous Art

The MAPI –Museum of Pre-Columbian and Indigenous Art– is an institution under the Department of Culture of the Municipality of Montevideo. It was founded in 2004 through an agreement between the then Mayor of Montevideo, the architect Mariano Arana, and the collector Matteo Goretti, who ceded to the departmental government, for a period of 20 years, part of the valuable collection he holds in Uruguay.

The MAPI was institutionalized by Decree 31.383 of the Departmental Board of Montevideo, which assigned the headquarters building for its exclusive use and encouraged the creation of a foundation to support the museum. It thus became the first mixed-management cultural institution, an innovative experience that has inspired the creation of other organizations with similar characteristics in Uruguay.

Over the years, the MAPI has increased its collection fivefold –it currently safeguards more than 7000 cultural objects– through the loan or donation of other collections by private individuals and public institutions, among them the Faculty of Architecture of the University of the Republic, the National Library of Uruguay, the Augusto Torres-Elsa Andrada Collection, with ethnographic objects from indigenous groups of North America, and the “Dr. Arturo Lezama” collection, made up of objects and human remains belonging to indigenous groups from the “Bañadero” archaeological site (Salto, Uruguay), which were recovered during the interventions of the Society of Friends of Archaeology (SAA) in 1975. The museum also manages the Claudio Rama Collection of Latin American Masks, with 900 pieces from all over the subcontinent.

In this context, the MAPI offers visitors a permanent exhibition of archaeological and ethnographic pieces belonging to different indigenous cultures from all over the Americas and carries out research, temporary exhibitions and publications on different aspects related to its subject matter.

In 2014, the museum presented an exhibition abroad for the first time, entitled “Uruguay in Guaraní, Indigenous Missionary Presence”, based on research led by the archaeologist Carmen Curbelo, which was shown at the Vatican Museums and the Ethnological Museum of Hamburg, and then toured other cities in Europe and Asia. Its international vocation and commitment to cultural cooperation have led to the presentation of numerous exhibitions abroad and to the organization at the MAPI of exhibitions from Mexico, Peru, Chile, China, Canada, Argentina, Russia, Ecuador, Ethiopia and Italy, among other countries of the world, seeking to provide a global panorama of the world’s indigenous populations.

Its exhibitions and educational activities also reach the interior of the country, having presented, in its two decades of existence, dozens of exhibitions and workshops throughout the territory of Uruguay

The MAPI also stands out for its Educational Services, whose activities welcome an average of 25,000 schoolchildren and high school students every year and which offer teaching materials and pedagogical proposals for teachers and students, developed by professionals in archaeology, art and pedagogy, reflecting the contents of the programs of all levels approved by the National Public Education Administration (ANEP).

As a cultural space, and in keeping with the functions established by the International Council of Museums – as a space for teaching, collecting, conservation, research, interpretation, exhibition, reflection, exchange and enjoyment – the MAPI also offers multiple activities associated with music, the performing arts, the visual arts and audiovisual media, among other disciplines, aimed at fulfilling its mission, disseminating knowledge and promoting respect for diverse cultures.

HERITAGE BUILDING

The Building

The building was constructed at the end of the 19th century -between 1883 and 1888- by Dr. Emilio Reus, originally conceived to become a hydrotherapy and thermal therapy medical establishment. Although it never opened as such, years later it housed the Ministry of Development and then the Ministry of National Defense until 1985.

It was declared a National Historic Monument in 1986 for its heritage and urban value and as a testimony to eclectic-historicist architecture -with a strong Italian influence- and to the construction technology of its time.

After remaining closed for almost two decades, it began to be restored in the early 2000s with the support of the government of the Canary Islands, which later withdrew from the project, giving way to the creation of the MAPI.

In 2011, the MAPI Restoration School-Workshop was created, which has been responsible for the restoration and enhancement of the building, with the participation of beneficiaries of the Uruguay Trabaja Program of the Ministry of Social Development and of other social programs promoted by the Municipality of Montevideo and the National Institute of Employment and Vocational Training, having recovered, to date, more than 2500 square meters.

Awards and recognitions

2011

Institutional Morosoli Award

The MAPI team

Director

Mag. Facundo de Almeida

Exposiciones y Reserva Técnica

Lic. Magdalena Muttoni

Coordinadora de Servicios Educativos

Lic. Constanza Rivero

Desarrollo tecnológico

Lic. Valentina Golubei

Administration and Human Resources

Cra. Laura Bidondo

Logistics and Infrastructure

Tec. Mauricio Acosta

Events and Public Relations

Lic. Sonia Fontans

Visitor Services

Tec. Laia Maseda

Archive, Library and Statistics

Nicolás Crispo

Asistente de coordinación

Lucía Rodriguez

Talleristas 2026

Jonatan Sandoval, Rafael Perroux, Alinson Andueza, Joaquín Almeida

Limpieza

Mariela Monzón, Shaya Gomez

ADMINISTRATION

Administrative Commission

The MAPI’s Administrative Commission holds powers delegated by the Municipality of Montevideo for the purpose of managing the MAPI’s cultural project and the works related to its headquarters building; supervising the operation of the museum and its management; managing the search for complementary funds through national and international financing for the refurbishment of the headquarters building; promoting the incorporation of new collections; and coordinating with various institutions at the local, regional and international levels to fulfill its purposes.

Intendencia de Montevideo

Mario Bergara, Débora Quiring y Alejandro Nión

Administrative Commission

President

Mag. Facundo de Almeida

Board Members

Carmen Curbelo, Valentín Enseñat

COORDINATION

MAPI Foundation

The MAPI Foundation is a non-profit organization, established on May 13, 2005, whose purpose is to implement and coordinate actions with the Municipality of Montevideo, support the management of the Museum of Pre-Columbian and Indigenous Art (MAPI) and carry out activities related to culture and education, in order to promote interest in and the dissemination of art, archaeology, anthropology, history, ethnography, museology and tourism, and the preservation and conservation of cultural heritage.

It is registered with the Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC) – Registry of Legal Entities under number 10201, folio 219 of book 18, on February 8, 2006.