One of the Museum's core activities is its research. This focuses on the areas directly or indirectly related to its subject matter and its territorial area "Tarraco and the ager tarraconensis" from its antecedents in the Iberian culture (6th-5th c. BC) to the end of the Visigothic period (7th-8th c. AD).
It is research that enhances our knowledge of both the exhibits that make up the collections and the archaeological sites and complexes managed by the Museum - the Roman Villa of Els Munts, the Roman Villa of Centcelles, the Theater of Tarraco, the Necropolis of Tarraco, the Tower of the Scipios and the Arch of Berà. In this way, we can constantly increase our knowledge of the past of Tarraco and its territory.
In the past 15 years, archaeological excavations have been carried out on the Romana Villa of Els Munts, the Necropolis of Tarraco, the Roman Complex of Centcelles and the Theater of Tarraco. To a greater or lesser extent, these interventions have contributed important information about the characteristics, functions and evolutionary processes of these extremely important elements in the history of Roman Tarraco.
In addition to programmes dealing with its own collections and the archaeological monuments it manages, the MNAT participates actively in other research through cooperation with or participation in the projects of other scientific institutions. The results of both its own research and that of other institutions are disseminated through the organisation of or participation in seminars, conferences, exhibitions and publications. Attention and support for scholars researching areas related to the collection also form part of the MNAT's activities.
