Opened by Santiago's first republican mayor, Emilio Bacardí, this museum highlights the history of the province. History and ethnography are showcased primarily by native Indian (shrunken heads and Peruvian mummies) and Egyptian exhibits (base of a sarcophagus and funerary art). Another section is devoted to Spanish artists. Lastly, the museum also displays paintings from Santiago de Cuba and around the country, including numerous works by the landscape artist José Joaquín Tejada.