By visiting a selection of Riga's museums you will get a comprehensive overview of the city, its people and its rather turbulant history. |
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Riga History and Navigation Museum
The Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation is the oldest in Latvia and the whole of the Baltics, and one of the oldest in Europe. The Museum is situated in Old Riga, in a remarkable architectural monument of the 13th–20th centuries – the ensemble of the Riga Dom.
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Andrejs Upits Memorial Museum
Andrejs Upits' Memorial Museum is a museum in Riga, Latvia. Founded in 1972, it is housed in the apartment which was the last home of the writer Andrejs Upits.
Arsenals Fine Arts Museum
The Museum's mission is to be aware of, collect and preserve, research, make available and popularise among the broadest sections of society, Baltic and Latvian art treasures from the 18th century to today;
Eduards Smilgis Theater Museum
The museum was founded in 1976. It is located in the house of Eduard Smilgis (1886-1966), "Daile" theatre producer. Here you can see his study, hall and stage. Permanent exhibition is dedicated to the theatre's history. The museum's events and exhibition hall will tell you about past and present of the theatre.
Blaumanis Memorial Museum
View the apartment where famous Latvian painter Janis Rozentāls and renowned writer Rūdolfs Blaumanis once lived. Visitors can look at original Rozentāls sketches and portraits which cost 100 roubles at a time when a month's rent cost fewer than 20 roubles. If these names mean nothing to you, it's worth a visit just to see the amazing Art Nouveau interior of this 100-year-old building.
Janis Akuraters Museum
He was a teacher in various schools. Was captured after Revolution 1905 . In 1907 emigrated to Finnland but next year came back. Was a member of the National Council and the director of the Art department. Published 9 volumes of poetry, 12 screenplays, also stories and novels.
Died 1937.
Jekabs Primanis Museum of Anatomy
In 1920 the Swedish professor Gaston Bakman founded the Institute of Anatomy and Histology. At the same time the Scientific Museum of Anatomy was established by Jekabs Primanis. The institute and the museum are housed on the premises of a former Orthodox seminary.
Krisjanis Barons Memorial Museum
One of the most revered men in Latvian history, Barons collected and codified over one million folk songs by walking all over the country and writing down this wealth of oral culture so that future generations might understand their ancestors and thus understand themselves.
Latvian Architecture Museum
Museum inhabits one of the Medieval dwelling houses in Old Riga., known as “Three brothers”.
Latvian Foreign Art Museum
Set in the Riga Castle, the ground floor features ancient oriental, antique, medieval and Renaissance sculptures and ceramics. The upper halls feature European paintings, graphic works, sculptures and temporary exhibitions. The romantic cellar also called the 'arched halls' is a great example of 14th-century architecture.
The Natural History Museum of Latvia
The Natural History Museum of Latvia is the oldest complex collection of natural riches in the Baltic States. The museum gathers and maintains collections of natural specimens from Latvia and the world, does scientific research on the collections and popularizes them in permanent and temporary exhibits and other display activities.
Latvian Ethnographic Open Air Museum
100 hectares of life as it used to be. Farmsteads, windmills, fishing villages, churches and other historic structures have been moved here and preserved for posterity. Watch craftsmen perform various tasks or try some Latvian cuisine and drink in the tavern. Take bus N°1 from the corner of Merķeļa and Tērbatas to the Brīvdabas muzejs stop.
Latvian Photography Museum
It is a national institution by the importance of the objects it conserves the research for a national identity, to rediscover past. It is hoped that a growing number of international visitors will find that the concerns of this country and its government are not just those of mercantile strength, technological ingenuity or ethnic selfadmiration.
Latvian War Museum
The mission of the War museum is to save collective, historical memory of the nation about political and militarily history of Latvia, the influence of the military conflicts (especially 20th century World Wars) on the destiny of the nation and the reflection of these conflicts consequences, the historical character of Latvian soldiers and the popularization of the state defence system.
Latvian Museum of Culture Dauderi
Museum's building was built in 1897 as "Waldschlössen" (at present - "Aldaris"), family mansion of the owner Adolf von Bingner (design's author - F. Zeiberlihs). It is surrounded with the park created in the beginning of 20th century by Georgs F. F. Kūfalts.
Latvian Sports Museum
The idea about the museum appeared already in the 20th century 30ties when the famous circus dangler and jeweler Kārlis Vītoliņš (1872-1953) presented the collection of his awards and bicycles to Voldemārs Šmidbergs (1893-1975).
Latvian Fire-Fighting Museum
This museum is situated in a fire-station which was built in 1911 in the Art Nouveau architectural style.
Latvian University Museum of Botany
The Herbarium of the University of Latvia contains more than 150 000 specimens of vascular plants and cryptogams (lichens, algae, fungi) from Estonia and Latvia. The oldest collections date back to the middle of the 19th century.
Latvian University Museum of Geology
Minerals, rocks and fossils collected in Latvia comprise the majority of the collection of the Museum of Geology.
Latvian Museum of Computing Science
The Museum of Computer Science and Technology was founded in 1984. The permanent exhibition briefly illustrates the history of automatic computing and provides a full account of the introduction of modern computer technologies and the development of computer science in Latvia since the late 1950s.
Latvian University Museum of History
The history museum of the university has been modeled on the office of the history of art set up for E.Felsbergs, professor of the year in 1921/22. It was set up to serve the purposes of education and science, as well as popularize the values of cultural history.
Latvian History Museum
The National History Museum of Latvia is the largest repository of Latvian material culture. It was founded in 1869 as the museum of the Riga Latvian Society.
Mentzendorffs House museum
The Mentzendorff's House – a branch of the Riga Museum of History and Navigation – brings you in the cosy atmosphere of the 17 th –18 th cent. dwelling house. Having been opened since May 18, 1992, it is the only museum presenting social culture traditions of wealthy Rigans.
Sun museum
Not enough sun in Latvia?
It used to be only one sun – now there are hundreds of them! It all started with a small sun shaped pendant brought by the founder of the museum from the sunny Portugal. Soon enough collection of different sun shaped objects became quite a passion to Iveta Gražule. Now the private collection of suns has grown to an impressive exposition with hundreds of items.
Museum of Decorative Arts
The Museum of Decorative Arts and Design features some of the most interesting exhibitions of both Latvian and international artists and designers, which changes regularly.
Museum of Pharmacy
This museum was founded in 1987, as an affiliate to Pauls Stradins Museum for History of Medicine. It is set up in a dwelling house which is an 18th century architectural monument. The museum shows the development of pharmacy and pharmacies in Latvia.
Ojars Vacietis Memorial Museum
The flat where the poet Ojars Vacietis (1933-1983) lived was opened as a memorial museum in 1992. Surrounded by his personal belongings such as his beret, sunglasses, globe, manuscripts and drawings, the visitor can gain an insight into the poet's character and personality. The collection contains 17000 items.
Occupation Museum of Latvia
Drafts for the Museum's enlargment project, which we call Nākotnes Nams (NN, Building for the Future), have been completed, and the City Building Office has issued an architectural planning permit setting forth certain conditions and approvals that must be obtained before preparation of technical drawings.
Museum of the History of Medicine
The museum was founded in 1957. The main exhibition consists of the private collection of Pauls Stradins in the history of medicine. The main idea of the museum is to show the visitors the development of medicine throughout the history, and that medicine and history go hand in hand.
Rainis Museum of Literature and Art History
Documentation of history of national literature started in 1925. Collections on the history of theatre, music and painting formed centralized reserve containing 500,000 units. The are 9 affiliates of the museum, mainly memorial museums. In Riga Castle you can see a display on Latvian literature from the very roots up to 1940.
Riga Film Museum
The Riga Film Museum, which opened its doors in 1988, has changed its legal status several times over the years. Since 1996, the museum is a state-financed institution under the Ministry of Culture of Latvia.
Riga Motor Museum
Riga Motor Museum is the biggest antique vehicle museum in the Baltic countries. It has gained acknowledgement in Europe and in the whole world.
Riga Motor Museum is a state culture institution that is functioning both in Latvian and international culture environment, available to the public for research and education.
Riga Technical University Museum
On 19 March 1990, the Riga Technical University got its present name. Since then the University has been successfully reorganising its study processes to ensure compliance of academic and professional tertiary education focused on the branches typical for the national economy of Latvia with the requirements of the European Union.
