Kosovo Museum ( sq, Muzeu i Kosovës, sr, Музеј Косова / ''Muzej Kosova'') is the

National Museum A national museum is a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In other countries a much greater numb ...

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

, located in the city of

Pristina Pristina, ; sr, / (, ) is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. The city's municipal boundaries in Pristina District form the largest urban center in Kosovo. After Tirana, Pristina has the second largest population of ethnic Albanians and ...

. Founded in 1949 by Yugoslav authorities, it is the largest museum in Kosovo, located in an

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

-style building from 1889 that previously served as the high military command headquarters. The museum is the earliest institution of

cultural heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by soci ...

in Kosovo, established with the goal of preserving, restoration-conservation and presentation of movable heritage on the territory. It is situated in a special facility, from an architectural point of view but also because of its location since it is situated at the old nucleus of the city centre.

History

Founded in 1949, the Kosovo Museum has departments of

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

ethnography Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject o ...

, and

natural science Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...

, to which a department for the study of history and the National Liberation Struggle was added in 1959. It has been active in sponsoring archaeological excavations, conservation and other scientific work. Since 1956 it has published an annual journal called ''Buletin i Muzeut të Kosovës'', with articles in

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

(with summaries in French, English, or German). The overall museum consists of three museum parts: Kosovo Museum itself, Emin Gjiku's Housing Complex where an ethnological exhibition has been presented, and the Museum of Independence. Museum consists of four sectors, archaeological sector, ethnological sector, historic sector and natural sector. The main museum building consists of 3 halls or galleries and one of them serves as a hall for permanent archaeological exhibitions, but various exhibits are also presented in the inner yard of the museum as well at the

lapidarium A lapidarium is a place where stone (Latin: ) monuments and fragments of archaeological interest are exhibited. They can include stone epigraphy, epigraphs; statues; architectural elements such as columns, cornices, and acroterions; bas reliefs ...

, respectively in the Archaeological Park, which is located next to the museum building, or on the right side of it. In the cellars of the museum, are located the warehouses of thousands of findings, artefacts and movable fragments of archaeological material, which are systematized and kept in special conditions with particular attention and care. Within the building of Kosovo Museum, namely on its third floor, you can find the working environment of Kosovo Archaeological Institute, a scientific-professional institution and responsible for archaeological research.

The Ethnological Museum

The Ethnological Museum is an integral part of the museum, located in the old housing complex, consisting of four buildings: two of which date from the 18th century and two others from the 19th century. The housing complex was constructed by Gjinolli family or Emin Gjiku who then migrated to Turkey in the years 1958–59. Later on, the Natural Museum was opened in this housing complex. In 2006, a permanent ethnological exhibition of Kosovo museum was set in this housing complex. The concept of ethnological museum is based on 4 topics which present the life cycle starting from birth, life, death and spiritual heritage of the Albanians in Kosovo during the Ottoman period. The stone house or the synagogue is also a part of the museum which during the 1950s was transferred from the old part of the city of Pristina to this housing complex. Today it serves as a centre of contemporary art – Station.

The Archaeological Park

The Archaeological Park, the

Lapidarium A lapidarium is a place where stone (Latin: ) monuments and fragments of archaeological interest are exhibited. They can include stone epigraphy, epigraphs; statues; architectural elements such as columns, cornices, and acroterions; bas reliefs ...

of Kosovo Museum, was designed to become an additional part of an outdoor exhibition of archaeological heritage of Kosovo. Architectural fragments, epigraphic inscriptions, altars and kennels or grave stones, that apart from mythological scenes, funeral processions, presentation of images of the past descendants supplemented with carved inscriptions, all of these reflecting upon the spiritual and material world of Dardania’s ancient period. The Archaeological Park of Kosovo Museum has been designed to serve as a lapidarium, which is a predetermined place for exhibiting stone monuments and architectural fragments of an archaeological nature. The Park is intended to serve as a memorial place for the antiquity and the level of civilisations from ancient times and also for the organisation of cultural and educational events for children and young people.

Gallery

Prishtina, National Museum of Kosovo.jpg National_Museum,_Prishtinë,_Kosovo.JPG Muzeu_i_Kosovës_3.jpg At_National_Museum_of_Kosova.jpg Hyjnesha_muze.jpg Axes_and_spears_-_National_Museum_of_Kosovo.jpg Old_living_room.JPG

Notes

References