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Museo National (Costa Rican National Museum) is well organized and maintained, and is devoted to Costa Rica’s pre-Columbian relics, period costumes, colonial furniture, and photographs, that document Costa Rican development. The complex was originally the colonial Buena Vista Fort, well named for the splendid view of San Jose that can be enjoyed from the grounds. The fort encircles a patio overgrown with beautiful plants and featuring some of the enigmatic pre-Hispanic boulders that are peculiar to Costa Rica. The museum is opposite Plaza de la Democracia, built to mark the November 1989 centenary of Costa Rican democracy.
Also known as the Jade Museum, Museo Marco Fidel Tristan has the world’s largest collection of American jade, and its priceless collection of other pre-Columbian artifacts are also well displayed. Many pagan fertility symbols are included, and the region’s distinctive cultural heritage is highlighted. On the 11th floor of the National Insurance Institute on downtown San Jose, a clear day presents a spectacular view of the surrounding central valley, volcanoes and both oceans.
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