The Lleida Museum (Museu de Lleida: Diocesà i Comarcal) brings together collections from across the region covering archaeology, art, and religious material culture. The medieval and Romanesque sections are the most interesting — this part of Catalonia was at the edge of the Christian reconquest for centuries, and the material culture reflects a society that was both shaped by and in conflict with the Islamic world to the south.
The permanent collection includes carved stone capitals from destroyed rural churches, Romanesque panels from mountain sanctuaries, and objects from the Roman period when Lleida was known as Ilerda — an important city that Julius Caesar besieged and took in 49 BC on his way to consolidate power in Spain. The museum is well-organised and the building is modern; it makes a good complement to La Seu Vella just up the hill.