Four years after a devastating blaze wiped out the majority of its incredible 20 million-object collection, the rebuilding of Brazil’s fire-damaged National Museum has reached an important construction milestone in Rio de Janeiro. 

According to The Art Newspaper, local firms Velatura Restaurações and Construtora Biapó have now completed the restoration of the historic facade and expect the building to be completely reopened sometime in 2027. The upgraded facilities will eventually include an extra 2,100 square meters (22,604 square feet) of exhibition space with capacity for the display of up to 10,000 items.  

H+F Architects, the team behind its interior restoration, said of the eventual finished product: “There will be a more contemporary atmosphere, with a mixture of elements conserved and restored.”

They also mentioned that the fire apparently served as a “violent intervention” that helped expose layers of history dating to 1808 and which will now feature significantly in the redesigned museum.

“We would like to make it easier for visitors to read this timeline through the building itself — to reveal the contradictions that exist here,” co-founder Pablo Hereñu told TAN. “There were arches that were cut in the middle, windows hidden by new walls, paint covered by dozens of layers and many other elements that tell this complex story.”

The total cost for the restoration project is expected to number up to $97 million USD. Brazil's federal government is currently kicking in just $58,000 a year in support of the effort, although some are optimistic that the upcoming presidential election will herald a new direction. As the museum's director Alexander Kellner put it: “It’s peanuts in comparison to what we really need.”