Established upon the behest of the late Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal in 1999, the Argao Parish Museum houses the town’s religious treasures.

Msgr. Jose S. Montecillo, the parish priest at the time, had just transferred to Argao so he tasked his classmate Msgr. Elias Matarlo with the job. Matarlo is a native of Argao and the 44th priest produced by the town.

Matarlo then went about setting up the Museo dela Parroquia de San Miguel, which is a member of the Visayan Association of Museums and Galleries, Inc. (VAMGI).

Museum treasures

A centerpiece display in the museum is the larger than life sculpture of the archangel Michael, wings spread and sword raised, standing over the fallen Lucifer. The image used to adorn Argao’s San Miguel de Arcangel Parish Church and was paraded around in a carroza during religious activities but had to be kept in a safe place when it sustained damages, according to museum staff Myrgrid Mamites.

Other relics and artifacts include: ecclesiastical vestments of long ago

The museum is open from:
Friday to Sunday or Thursday to Saturday (in case of Sunday parish meetings)
9:00 am-12:00 pm
1:00 pm-4:00 pm

It may be opened any other day by prior arrangement.