El Museo Antropológico Reina Torres de Araúz

Panama’s anthropology museum (Plaza Cinco de Mayo, tel. 212-3079 or 212-3089, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Mon.–Fri., closed Sat. and Sun., $2 adults, $.25 students), sometimes known as MARTA, is housed in a massive building that was built in 1912 as the terminus of the Panama Railroad. It was reopened in 2000 after several years of renovation. Or rather, a couple of small halls were opened; most of the building remains bare. New halls are being opened at a glacial place, and others that have been recently renovated mysteriously close for re-renovation. It’s a crap shoot which halls may be open during any particular visit.

As long as one’s expectations are low, the place is worth a visit. It does have some unusual displays, and the guides, whose services are included with the entrance fee, are friendly and helpful though they speak little English. It’s possible to see the whole place in less than an hour. The museum is right on Plaza Cinco de Mayo near the beginning of the pedestrian section of Avenida Central, so a visit can be combined with a shopping/walking tour.

The main exhibit, in the room next to the entrance, is dedicated to the Barriles culture, believed to be Panama’s earliest major civilization. It grew up around Volcán Barú in western Panama before 700 b.c. and came to a sudden end with the eruption of Barú in a.d. 600. Little is known about this culture, though it’s believed to have been both agrarian and dominated by warriors. The figures on display came from a ceremonial center that dates from around 60 b.c. The site is on a farm just west of the town of Volcán that’s open to visitors but today contains little worth seeing.

The exhibit here consists of about a dozen and a half carved stone figures and fragments. Because these pieces were discovered in 1947–1948 through huaquería (grave robbing), nearly all their historic context has been lost.

The exhibit is modest and little is known about this culture, but the mystery surrounding the pieces adds something to their appeal. Especially memorable are the strange stone statues depicting a proud figure wearing a conical hat who is being carried on the shoulders of a stockier man. Not surprisingly, this has been taken as evidence of a stratified society, with chiefs figuratively or perhaps literally supported by their subjects. The other notable piece is an unusually large (2.3 meters long) ceremonial metate, a stone table used for grinding corn. Because of its similarities to metates throughout pre-Colombian Central America, and the grim carved human heads lining its edges, it’s believed to have been used for sacrifices.

The gold room upstairs contains a small collection of gold figures of animals, gold-armor plates, ceramics, jewelry, breast plates, a crown, and other items made by ancient indigenous peoples and recovered from archaeological sites around the country.

Most of the items are huacas, ceremonial treasures buried with prominent indigenous people. The oldest item, a copper and gold nose ring found on Cerro Juan Díaz on the Azuero peninsula, dates from 180 b.c. It’s displayed in a small window near the entrance to the main room. As part of Panama’s centennial celebration in 2003, the Reprosa jewelry store, well-known for its replicas of huacas, made reproductions of some of the prized ones in this collection. One especially impressive item here is a large spider made of gold and copper. Also notice the especially fine work on the tiny cascabels (string of small bells). Several of the pieces in the displays are broken, which is believed to have been part of an ancient funeral rite to make sure no one in this world could use the objects again. There is also a display of human bones and huacas dating from A.D. 1500 that were dug up at Sitio Conte in Coclé.

Two new halls have recently been opened on the third floor. The first is the Salón de las Huellas, which attempts to depict the traditional dwellings, utensils, and clothing of some of Panama’s peoples. The exhibit is somewhat amateurish and contains little written information, but it’s worth a quick look.

The second hall is the Salón de la Etnografía (Ethnography Hall). The displays include pre-Colombian metates used in rituals and to grind corn; fishing gear; pre-Colombian ceramics, including a few impressive pieces; a century-old pollera; a variety of traditional hats; and so on.