From now on, the only way to see the exhibits in the Museu National will be via the photographs people took while visiting there before yesterday’s tragic blaze.
Here are some pictures from Instagram that give just a tiny taste of the treasures that were lost.
The museum began life as a palace for the Portuguese royal family, exiled to Brazil to escape the conquering armies of Napoleon.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BnPzhgJBF2u/?tagged=museunacionalrj
Just the architectural loss alone is staggering.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BnQU6mKgQz0/?tagged=museunacionalrj
Be sure to click through this next one (the arrows on the right and left) for just a taste of what was housed in the museum.
The museum had a huge butterfly collection.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BnPnaMNAtVE/?tagged=museunacionalrj
There were dinosaur bones. Lots of dinosaur bones (click on the right of the image to see more).
The curators were not without their sense of humor…
Another feature was a huge collection of indigenous art.
The feeling one gets when one realizes that this is completely destroyed now cannot be adequately put into words.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BG5HTl5wpeD/?tagged=museunacionalrj
See our full coverage of the fire at the Museu Nacional here.
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