Showcase ZERO. Pioneering Women

SHOWCASE ZERO, inaugurated in October 2017, is a space dedicated to displaying unique pieces and themes that complement and enrich the MAN’s permanent exhibition. These may be new acquisitions, commemorative exhibits, guest works or any other theme related to the museum’s collections and contents. The contents of this brand-new space are modified quarterly, offering all our visitors a chance to see something new every time.

The National Archaeological Museum hired its first woman conservator in 1928. In the years since then, the museums of our country have become predominantly female spaces.

This Showcase Zero is a tribute to the first generations of professional women who worked in museums, born between the late 19th and early 20th century. Some of these ladies were educated in the spirit of the Institución Libre de Enseñanza, participated in the Mediterranean study cruise, stayed in the Residencia de Señoritas founded by María de Maeztu, and set out on promising career paths that were cut short by the Spanish Civil War. Others found jobs at museums after the war and would be instrumental in reinstalling the collections.

The first women conservators were trailblazers, but they did not move in international research circles, had few opportunities to participate in archaeological digs, and worked with very limited resources. Despite these disadvantages, they forged ties of cooperation that prepared them to deal with the new mentality which they introduced but whose benefits were primarily enjoyed by subsequent generations of women.

Prehistory Department and Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities