Historical Museum in Kyiv

The National Historical Museum of Ukraine is a national heritage museum.

Удалено: The National Museum of the History of Ukraine dominates Andrew’s Descent. It faces the ever popular St. Andrew’s Church. As its name suggests, the museum is dedicated to showing and explaining the development of Ukrainian society.
Its vast and varied displays comprising 15 different exhibitions, trace the major milestones in the development of Ukrainian society and state. Artifacts from Stone Age camps, the weapons and armor of Polovtsians, household items and ornaments of the famous Trypillian culture, many exhibits from the times of Kyivan Rus (9-13th century), the Cossacks (14 -17th century), the Ukrainian National Republic (1917-1920) – flags, fabrics, portraits, and everyday objects, etc. Perhaps the most spectacular exhibit of the museum is the light carriage (coupe) which Empress Elizabeth Petrovna used for her travels. The Empress donated it to Kyiv Metropolit Rafail Zaborovskyi during her stay in Kyiv in 1744. The carriage is well-preserved and visitors can behold its beauty and be amazed by the sumptuous luxury that surrounded Elizabeth wherever she went. There is also the largest collection of coins in Ukraine – over 120,000 items – fully representative of the different states and different historical periods.

The pride of the Historical Museum is a holographic exhibition of 30 paintings and sculptures.
Of these, the most important and memorable is the famous Scythian bust from 4th century BC, which captures the eye with its heroic gaze. Do take your time and walk around this museum! Outside, on the observation deck there is the famous stone with inscription in Old Church Slavonic: “From whence started the Russian land…” (The Tale of Bygone Years). At the entrance to National History Museum of Ukraine you see the six famous ancient statues of women, the Scythian stone sculptures of gods and warriors: three from the Scythian epoch (6th century BC) and three — Polovtsian (12- 13th centuries). They say that it is better not to get too interested or familiar with them as legend says they are sacred and untouchable! Once they stood in the steppes of Eastern and Southern Ukraine. Also, in the meadow in front of the museum you can find the ruins of the Prince’s houses and the shrine of Perun (a Slavonic pagan God).

Lidiia Shokha

This article was published in the book Interesting Kyiv.
You could download this book in PDF file for free here.

© Sky Horse Publishing House (Kyiv) / Nahs Haus, 2019
Copying and publication of this article is possible only with the written permission of the publishing house.
Official website of the Awesome Heritage series: awesomeheritage.com

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