The Ourense Provincial Archaeological Museum occupies the building that was the Bishop’s Palace. It is one of the best preserved civil monumental ensembles in Romanesque style, and was declared a Historic-Artistic Monument in 1931. Its structure is a faithful testimony of the development of the city, with Roman, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and modern elements. Its construction began in the 12th century and played an important role in the medieval urban organization.
The site was already occupied in Roman times, as evidenced by the discovered building remains, and subsequently by a high-medieval necropolis.
The present building was built in the 12th century, and its main façade is now, after many reforms in the surroundings, a Romanesque courtyard. Over the centuries it underwent modifications and extensions that altered its general appearance. So, the added elements are Gothic (tower of Santa Maria), Renaissance (garden galleries), Baroque (the main entrance) and modern (arcades in Bispo Carrascosa street).
The Archaeological Museum, founded in 1895, finally settled in this building in 1951, undergoing a restoration, according to a project by Pons Sorolla in 1960-1968.
The first written record of church in Danmark locality date back to the year 1291. Close to the church are several stones with a Christian text and cross inscribed. The oldest parts of the present red-brick church are from the 1300s. In the late 1400s the church was enlarged to the appearance it has today. The church has been modified both internally and externally several times, among other things after the fires in 1699 and 1889. There are lot of well-preserved mural paintings in the walls.