The Ethnographic Museum of Pilsen underwent extensive renovation! It will offer visitors two tours – PHOTOS

The project “Revitalization of the Museum of West Bohemia in Pilsen – Ethnographic Museum of Pilsen” was implemented between 2021 and 2023. The revitalization included not only the structural reconstruction of two historically important buildings, but also the construction of a new permanent exhibition. The public will see the museum for the first time on April 30.

Upon entering the museum, the visitor will notice the changes, the reception is right behind the entrance gate, and the courtyard has also been renovated.

“The main change is that two visitor circuits have been created in the museum. People used to be able to see the Gerlach House in particular, but now the sightseeing circuit will also take them to the Chotěšovské House, which is also wheelchair-accessible thanks to the elevators.” Jiří Orna, director of the West Bohemian Museum in Pilsen, mentioned.

Visitors can look forward to two sightseeing tours. The first of them is dedicated to the period from 1830 to 1900 and shows the life of an individual from a rural environment from his birth to the end of his productive age, which he already reached in the bourgeois environment of Pilsen. The second is dedicated to crafts and also clothing in the city of Pilsen and in the suburban areas.

“In the museum, a large space is given to the collection of bourgeois clothing. Visitors might be interested, for example, in the late Renaissance burial equipment of Bohunka Lobkowicz from Šternberk. It is displayed even with her hairstyle and shoes,” mentioned Michal Chmelenský, head of the Ethnographic Museum of Pilsen.

The museum will be open to the public with a guide or independently. There are information boards at the individual exhibits, often supplemented with interactive elements that catch the eye at first glance. For example, the visitor can listen to the sound of the bells, or take a closer look at period photographs from Pilsen and the surrounding area.

“The exhibitions are designed in a modern way, supplemented by multimedia presentations. The Center for Experimental Ethnology will soon be established here. There, visitors will be able to try the skills of our ancestors for themselves.” Jiří Orna, director of the West Bohemian Museum in Pilsen, revealed.

“We would like to allow visitors to try out the crafts or skills for themselves. For example, they will be able to process something from kangaroos, create an offering from wax or traditional products from reeds. It’s something that should complement our permanent exhibition,” he was supplemented by the head of the Pilsen Ethnographic Museum.

For the first time, visitors can see the Ethnographic Museum of Pilsen on April 30 in the afternoon as part of the May festivities.

“May building is our traditional event. At the end of May, the Museum Night will also take place here. But visitors can look forward to events throughout the year,” Jiří Orna promised.

The project “Revitalization of the West Bohemian Museum in Pilsen – Ethnographic Museum of Pilsen” cost 129 million CZK. Of this, the European Fund for Regional Development paid CZK 97.75 million, the Ministry of Regional Development of the Czech Republic paid CZK 5.75 million, and finally, the founder of the museum – the Pilsen Region – initially an amount of CZK 11.5 million was allocated, with regard to costs, the region increased the amount to a total of 25.8 million CZK (returnable financial assistance of 14.3 million CZK).

“Ethnography as such is an essential part of our culture. Getting to know the behavior, study and education more closely, or, for example, the development of our ancestors’ clothing or their way of spending their free time, this is the basis of ourselves, the basis of a living and functional society. I am very happy that the revitalization of the museum is being implemented and will thus offer another insight into history through new exhibits with slightly different eyes” says Libor Picka, councilor of the Pilsen region for culture, heritage preservation and tourism.

IROP 1 supported 80 projects of Czech and Moravian museums with almost 3.5 billion crowns. Seven of them were implemented in the Pilsen region and received 274 million of this amount. In the current period, IROP allocated 2.2 billion to support museum activities.

Photo by QAP