Something Different: Three Unique Museums in Cusco, Peru

The ancient ruins, colonial churches, and historical museums of Peru are both fascinating and beautiful, but with so many choices, travelers can overdose. Here, we present three unique museums in Cusco which offer something a little different, for travelers looking to branch out: immerse youself in the history of sacred and medicinal plants of the Andes and Amazon, having your future read in the coca leaves along the way, admire ancient relics chosen for their artistic rather than historical characteristics, and learn how to turn the cacao bean into a chocolate bar, step by step…

The bilingual (English/Spanish) Museum of Sacred, Magical and Medicinal Plants on Calle Santa Teresa highlights medicinal herbs held sacred by the Incas and successive Andean populations through to the present day. Besides sipping free teas, you can occasionally have your coca leaves read. The first three rooms treat indigenous medicine, the coca leaf, and the history of tobacco. The second three deal with ayahuasca, san pedro, and shamanic and folk healing traditions in the Andes and Amazon, This is a nice place to learn about the shamanic and folk healing traditions of the Andes and the Amazon. The final rooms deal with medicinal plants and what the museum terms bio-piracy. Admission is 15 soles, with proceeds going to South American conservation efforts.

If you only visit one museum in Cusco, it’s worth your while to make it the privately-owned Pre-Columbian Art Museum (often referred to as the MAP) in San Blas. Although it’s the city’s most expensive at 20 soles, its pieces have been carefully curated from the vast collection of Lima’s Larco museum. 11 galleries showcase pieces dating back as far as 250BC, all of which have been chosen for their artistic value. The museum allows for a completely different perspective on the artistic efforts of Peru’s pre-Columbian civilizations and cultures, which differentiates it from the historically-minded museums.

You might be disappointed in the tiny Choco Museum, as it doesn’t have much to offer by way of exhibits. However, it’s centrally located, free to visit, and they offer you a free cacao tea sample. The museum’s true strength is its workshops, which are a wonderfully entertaining and hands-on way to learn more about chocolate. The basic cacao bean-to-chocolate bar class is a must, with interesting alternatives such as chocolate sculpting for aficionados. You’ll walk away with great photos and a box of chocolates.