A museum documenting the history of the slave trade and slavery in Matanzas province, which was one of the most intensively worked sugar regions in the Caribbean during the 18th and 19th centuries. The province received a large proportion of the enslaved Africans brought to Cuba, and the cultural legacy — in music, religion, and language — is still visible throughout the city.
The museum is part of the UNESCO Slave Route Project, which links heritage sites across the Caribbean and West Africa connected by the history of the transatlantic trade. The collections cover the social, economic, and cultural dimensions of slavery in Cuba, including the development of the Afro-Cuban religious traditions that remain active in Matanzas today. Well worth an hour for context on the city and the region.