City of Sugar Museum

The purpose of the Núcleo Museológico da Cidade do Açúcar (Sugar City Museum) located in the city centre near the Cathedral, is to highlight the cultural and artistic influences of the historical period of the Sugar Cycle (15th and 16th centuries ) on the development of Madeira.

The museum, which opened in 1996, presents a series of findings from archaeological excavations carried out in 1989 at houses belonging to the Flemish producer and merchant, João Esmeraldo, where this infrastructure is situated today.

Among the artefacts on display you will find a ‘Sugarloaf’, different forms of sugar, Flemish paintings and sculptures, a rare set of Manueline measuring instruments, meters and wrought silver objects with the coat of arms of the city. Pieces from the East, with special focus on two 17th century Chinese porcelain items, which are of high technical and artistic quality, can also be seen in the sugar museum.

These pieces reflect the life of society of that time. During the archaeological excavations in 1989, remains were found that represented life on the island of Madeira between the 15th and mid-18th centuries. Large quantities of fragments of Portuguese pottery from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries were also recovered. In addition to these objects, you will also enjoy seeing pipes, clay jugs, wooden bowls, lead seals and coins that were exhumed from an existing well.