Museo del Oro

The Museo del Oro is the sight most visitors put first in Bogotá, and with good reason. Run by the Banco de la República, the country's central bank, it was established on 22 December 1939 to stop pre-Columbian goldwork from being melted down or lost abroad. Its holdings have grown to around 55,000 pieces, of which roughly 6,000 are on show at any one time, making it one of the largest collections of pre-Columbian goldwork in the world. It is run by Banrepcultural, the bank's cultural network, which also manages the Museo Botero, and it receives around half a million visitors a year.

The museum reopened in October 2008 after about ten years of expansion and renovation. The permanent display now runs through five rooms, with an interactive room, an auditorium, temporary exhibition galleries, a café, a restaurant and a gift shop. The collection brings together goldwork made by many pre-Columbian cultures from across what is now Colombia.

The piece that draws the crowds is the Muisca raft, found in Pasca in 1969. The small gold sculpture shows the ceremony in which a new Muisca ruler was inaugurated on a lake, the ritual behind the European legend of El Dorado. It is the centrepiece of the Offering Boat room, so save some time and attention for it.

Plan on two to three hours if you want to read the panels; a fast loop of the highlights takes about an hour. The city's tourism pages note that the museum closes on Mondays and that entry is free for everyone on Sundays, which makes Sunday the busiest day. Hours can change, so check the Banco de la República cultural website before you go. The museum suits families, first-time visitors and anyone with an interest in archaeology, and is a good choice for a rainy afternoon.

The building stands on Carrera 6 at the corner of Parque Santander, at the northern edge of La Candelaria. From here it is a walk of a few blocks south to the Museo Botero and Plaza de Bolívar, so the museum fits naturally into a first day in the historic centre.