Anahuacalli Museum

The Anahuacalli Museum is a museum in the Coyoacán area of Mexico City created by artist Diego Rivera to house his collection of Mesoamerican and pre-Hispanic objects. The building is notable for its massive volcanic-stone construction and a stepped, pyramid-like appearance.

Exhibition spaces include galleries for pre-Hispanic ceramics, sculptures and ritual objects arranged around internal courtyards and passageways designed to recall indigenous monumental architecture. The complex also presents Rivera’s interest in integrating art, craft and architecture within a single site.

Diego Rivera assembled the collection over decades and oversaw the design of the building to accommodate it; the complex was completed and opened to the public after his lifetime. Over time the site has functioned as both a museum and a cultural centre for exhibitions about Mexican art and anthropology.

The museum sits in the southern part of Mexico City in the Coyoacán district, within an urban residential area that is well served by local roads and public transit.

• Collection: Houses Diego Rivera’s personal collection of pre-Hispanic and indigenous Mexican artifacts assembled during his lifetime.
• Architecture: The building is notable for its heavy use of volcanic stone and a massed, pyramid-like form that integrates exhibition spaces and courtyards.

The museum is in the Coyoacán borough of Mexico City. Take Metrobus or the Metro to Coyoacán/Centro Cultural stations and a short taxi or bus; many visitors combine it with nearby cultural sites in south-central Mexico City.

• Combine the visit with the Frida Kahlo museum or other Coyoacán sites to make a day of Diego Rivera's context.
• The museum architecture is Rivera's own project-pay attention to the black volcanic stone and courtyards.
• Weekends can be busy; early weekday mornings are quieter.