 The museum was founded in 1882 as the County Museum and houses one of the most important archaeological collections in Transylvania, including numismatic, ethnographic and natural science exhibits.The museum is housed in the 17th century Magna Curia Palace, constructed in 1621 under the authority of Prince (Voivode) Gabor Bethlen.Under Bethlen's rule, Deva was the capital of Transylvania, for a brief period.