The Las Ventas Bullfighting Museum

The Las Ventas museum is dedicated to the history of bull fighting in all its blood and glory.

Pictures are not allowed to be taken inside the museum so we can't do it full justice. But take the metro trip outside of central Madrid and you can easily spend a couple of hours in this small museum. Crowds are pleasantly absent.

Inside the museum are busts of all the famous bullfighters. English notes are available and they show that some bullfughters lived past the end of their bullfighting careers but many died either in the ring or as a result of wounds.

One particularly famous exhibit is the suit which the famous Manolete wore on the day he was killed by the bull Islero in 1947. Along side the suit (traje de luces or suit of lights) is the rudimentary blood transfusion that was used in the vain attempt to save Manolete's life when he was stretchered from the bullring.

The swords used to kill the bulls are on display and the majority of them were made from Toledo steel. The artistry of the swords is fascinating. Another exhibit of considerable value as well as interest is an original Goya painting of a matador.

Not only are the bullfighters featured, so are some of the famous picadores and banderilleros.

Most spectacular of all is the head of of the bull which killed Manuel Garcia Espartero in 1894 at the age of 29. Looking at that bull's head and others round the museum differences in their size is striking. Some of the larger heads are truly scary!