The Soares dos Reis National Museum aims to be a place of belonging, identity and the construction of meaning through its collections. The MNSR aims to be a plural space for sharing identity and belonging through art and culture, promoting reflection, creativity and contemporary critical thinking based on the collections it holds, preserves, researches and communicates.

Created by King Pedro IV in 1833, at the height of the Liberal Revolution, as the Museum of Paintings and Prints, and confirmed by King Maria II in 1836, the MNSR was Portugal's first public art museum.