At that time it was called Biblioteca y Museo Municipales (Municipal Library and Museum).

In those early days the collection included paintings and sculptures and many other kinds objects.

It kept the paintings and sculptures but gave the archaeological, natural history, and ethnology objects to other museums in Santander and the Cantabria region.

One of these is La muerte del toro (The Death of the Bull) by the Italian contemporary artist, Umberto Pettinicchio[2][3] y the Vollard suite of etchings by Pablo Picasso.

The most famous work in the museum is a portrait of Ferdinand VII of Spain by Francisco Goya.