The Goa State Museum, located in the Old Secretariat, Panaji, was set up with an aim to preserve the arts and antiquities of the state, along with objects of cultural significance. The extensive collection at the museum includes exhibits related to the state's natural heritage, contemporary art, cultural anthropology, environment and development, sculpture and geology, among other things.

Also known as the State Archaeology Museum, the Goa State Museum was established in 1977 and has over 8,000 artefacts on display that include bronze items, paintings, stone sculptures, manuscripts, rare coins and anthropological and wooden objects. The museum has 14 galleries -  Sculpture Gallery, Christian Art Gallery, Printing History Gallery, Banerji Art Gallery, Religious Expression Gallery, Cultural Anthropology, Contemporary Art Gallery, Numismatics Gallery, Goa's Freedom Struggle Gallery, Menezes Braganza Gallery, Furniture Gallery, Natural Heritage of Goa Gallery, Environment & Development Gallery, and Geology Gallery. The museum, open from Monday to Friday, has no entry fee. Photography is only allowed for students and scholars except on prior request.