In more than a century of existence, the National Museum of Archaeology has become the reference institution of Portuguese Archeology, with regular correspondence with museums, universities and research centers around the world. The collection of the Museum brings together the initial collections of the Founder and of Estácio da Veiga. To these were added numerous others, some by integration from other departments of the State (for example: collections of archeology of the former Portuguese Royal House, incorporated in the Museum after the implantation of the Republic, collections of archeology of the former Museum of Fine Arts, incorporated by the creation of the current National Museum of Ancient Art, etc.), others by donation or legacy of collectors and friends of the Museum (for example: donations Bustorff Silva, Luís Bramão, Samuel Levy, etc.), others thanks to the intense activity of the Museum itself or of archaeologists; others by government orders, under the applicable legislation, whenever the national value of archaeological goods discovered in the country is considered.