Paulista Museum
The Paulista Museum of the University of São Paulo, which is also known as the Ipiranga Museum, is a centennial institution founded on September 7th of 1895. The building that houses the Museum was built as a monument to Independence, since it is close to the place where it had been proclaimed, in the margins of Ipiranga River. It has a branch in the city of Itu/SP, the “CONVENÇÃO DE ITU” REPUBLICAN MUSEUM, which opened in 1923. When USP was created, in 1934, it was one of its complementary institutes. Since 1963 it has been fully part of the University. It is a scientific, cultural and educational institution that works in the field of History of the Material Culture of Brazilian society, especially in its Paulista segment, which is comprised of three lines of research: Everyday life and Society; Universe of Labor; Imagery of History.
It preserves a collection comprised of over 125,000 pieces, which is crucial for the understanding of history based on the material dimension of culture. Among the pieces there are objects, iconography and original documents from the 17th century up to the mid 20th century. This collection includes some of the most famous images of the country, such as the painting Independência ou Morte, by Pedro Américo. It contains traditional historic collections as well as ordinary objects that witnessed the history of everyday life.
© 2015 Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Universidade de São Paulo