Visiting
Based in the historic interiors of the Bishops Palace, the Subcarpathian Museum in Krosno has been collecting and exhibiting cultural goods related to regional history and unique collections on a European scale for more than half a century.
The museum invites you to visit the permanent exhibitions, presenting collections which are closely connected with the history and cultural heritage of the region.
Our museum offers Polish and English speaking guides. Visiting the permanent exhibitions lasts about 1 – 1.5 hours. Some of the rooms in the Bishops Palace are small, that is why a group cannot exceed thirty people. If the group is bigger, it has to be divided into two smaller groups. Then the visit is conducted by two guides simultaneously.
Another interesting educational activity of the Museum are guided tours of the old town.
The tour of historical monuments of the old town: Bishops Palace (the headquarters of The Subcarpathian Museum in Krosno), Piłsudskiego street, the parish church of the Holy Trinity, the parish belfry (from the outside), Krosno town square (old boundaries, the former Mayor’s residence and Renaissance Town Hall, the existing Mayor’s House), the Franciscan church (Oświęcim Chapel).
Reservation of the guided service has to be made in advance in the Museum’s Education and Promotion Department via email promocja@muzeum.krosno.pl
tickets
CENY BILETÓW:
Wstęp na wystawę archeologiczną i czasową
- Ticket - 5 PLN
- Reduced ticket - 4 PLN
- Family ticket - 15 PLN
W niedziele wstęp bezpłatny.
Visiting Hours:
Winter season (November - April):
- Monday - closed
- From Tuesday to Sunday: 9.00 - 15.00
Summer season (May - October):
- Monday - closed
- From Tuesday to Sunday: 9.00 - 16.00
The past enlivened
The first part of the exposition…
is located in the basement of the tenement building “Zgoda” and it presents the development of prehistoric settlement in the region since the arrival of humans around 20,000 years ago. We can find not only objects made by people of stone and flint there but also the oldest relics of the Pleistocene fauna: mandibles of the steppe elephants and mammoths’ teeth and bones. The relics from the Younger Stone Age are represented by flint axes and stone hatchets. The unique exhibits are endolithic copper axes of Trans Carpathian origin. The collection is completed by the stony querns, spindle whorls and fragments of earthen vessels.
The exhibition presents the history of prehistoric settlement in the Subcarpathian region from the time when a man appeared here in the Upper Palaeolithic (ca. 15,000 BC). We can find there not only objects made by people, but also the oldest relics of the Pleistocene fauna: mandibles of the steppe elephant and mammoth teeth and bones. The stone monuments, including arrowheads of reindeer hunters that are presented in the exhibition, come from the Palaeolithic. Among the unique finds, there is a discovery from the village of Hłomcza near Sanok. There were traces of a hut of Magdalenian culture from 15 thousand years ago, where a set of flint tools was found, made from a rare material – the flint from Bircza. The relics from the younger Stone Age are represented with the stoneware, among which there are flint axes and stone hatchets. The unique exhibits are endolithic copper axes of Trans Carpathian origin, rarely possible to be found in Poland. The collection is completed with stone querns, spinners and fragments of clay vessels.
The Bronze Age, which is famous for its rich settlement, is represented by a diverse material that has been found during the archaeological research on the cemeteries and the past settlements, including the traces of Otomani-Füzesabony culture discovered in the Jasło-Sanok Pits (hillforts in Trzcinica and Brzezówka, settlements in Jasło, Korczyna and the region of Sanok). This culture is represented by the characteristic earthen vessels, decorations and weapons made of bronze. In the subsequent stages of this age in our region appeared the settlement from Plińska and Gáva cultures. The relics associated with that come from the cemetery in Wietrzno, and settlements in Nienaszów and Korczyna.
They are represented by some bronze products: decorations, tools and weapons. In Hłomcza, close to Sanok, there was found the European phenomenon – the treasure of bronze ornaments from the early Iron Age (300 items). In the Iron Age in the region were settled the settlements of some Celtic tribes. We can find the tracks of their stay on our territory in the characteristic relics: specific pottery with an admixture of graphite, the decorations such as glass bracelets, the beads with an image of a face, iron clasps. The time of Roman influence is represented by relics connected with the Przeworsk culture, among them there are fragments of clay vessels, both hand-formed and potter’s wheel, clay spinners, anthropomorphic figures, spearheads, beads (made of glass or amber). The collection of coins from the 1st to the 6th century is an example of relics from the territory of the Roman Empire. The Slavic period is represented by the objects of daily use: fragments and whole earthenware vessels made by hand or turned on the wheel, iron objects: the keys, belt buckles and knives. Furthermore, there are exhibited military relics that have been found in the early Slavic hill forts: axes, spearheads, spurs, arrowheads.
The second part of the exposition…
shows the history of The Royal City of Krosno, its beginnings and resilient growth during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance when Krosno was named Parva Cracovia (“the little Cracow”). The exhibition was organised around uncovered relics of a defensive wall with a bastille, that was built in the 14th century during the reign of Casimir the Great – the founder of the town. A fragment of a wall 25 m long, up to 2 m wide and almost 3 m high exists here until nowadays. On the exhibition, there were collected exhibits from archaeological investigations carried out in the city, mainly on the market square in Krosno, including stonework, stone carvings, tiles and a set of relics discovered in latrines at the Krosno Market Square: clay vessels, unique shoemaker’s hooves, wooden products, fragments of glass vessels, leather products. Among the exhibits mentioned before, there are many priceless, unique relics made locally or imported from abroad (from the territory of Czechia and Germany).
Some of them accentuate the great importance of trade in the development of the city (i.a. textile seals). The collection is completed by the old views of the city and photographs of unknown stone buildings uncovered during the archaeological research: the Gothic tower of the mayor and the Renaissance town hall. There is also the equipment of the wooden urban infrastructure: the fragments of sewers, water pipes, bases of merchant stands. In this part of the exposition, it is possible to observe life-sized reconstructions of a medieval stand and a latrine. The undoubted ornament of the exhibition is formed with the magnificent specimens of Gothic art.
History of Krosno and the Region
In the first part,
there is presented painting work, completed with relics and photographs. This all creates a portrait of a 19th-century provincial Galician town and its inhabitants, facing up to the turmoil of the turn of the century, both world wars and totalitarian systems. The especially unique addition to the exhibition is a fortepiano from the Pleyel family’s Parisian manufactory, produced in 1862. Their instruments fulfilled the high requirements of Fryderyk Chopin and repeatedly won international industrial exhibitions, just like the model in the Museum. It is one of the oldest relics of the Chopin era in Poland, an original and fully operational cosy fortepiano of its class.
The first part of the exhibition majors on Romanticism’s atmosphere.
This vibe is introduced by the portrait painting and vedute. Numerous examples of photographs, prints and other museum collections document the functioning of the bourgeois and landowning environment during the time of the Galician autonomy and the Second Polish Republic.
There are emphasized patriotic-independence threads too. They proclaim that the residents of this region took part in fights for homeland freedom during the Napoleonic times, Springtide of Nations, January Uprising and years 1914-1921, including the defence of Lviv and Polish-Bolshevik war. This content is documented by patriotic jewellery, commemorative objects, documents, photographs, whiteware and firearms.
In the part of the exhibition connected with World War II
against the background of a rich display of militaria, the September campaign, the independence conspiracy, the ZWZ-AK, martyrdom, and for the post-war period, the activity of the anti-communist underground are presented. The enthusiasts find a collection of short and long firearms interesting. Apart from a rich collection of foreign-made weapons, examples of Polish technical thought were presented, with the ViS wz 35 guns at the forefront. The exhibition closes with a collection of photographs, graphics and printed matters from the last years of Krosno’s life. There are stressed selected facts from the social-political and cultural life and accented the important events – the solidarity uprising (1980-1981), the beginning of third independence (1989-1990) and the stay of Pope John Paul II in the Krosno region (1997).
History of Lighting
This exhibition is the boast of the Museum
The main element of that is the most valuable collection of paraffin lamps in Europe. They originate from various European and global manufacturers. The exhibition presents the most popular light sources in chronological order: from ancient olive oil lamps to modern candlesticks and candelabras, oil lamps, paraffin lamps and electric lamps in the 1st half of the 20th century. A special arrangement of the historic interiors here evokes the atmosphere of a bourgeois living room from the turn of the century.
The first exposition consists of examples of candle lighting – these are various candlesticks and lanterns from the 17th century to the 1st half of the 20th century. The oldest among them are the churchly candlesticks with a spike, made of pewter, wood, bronze and brass. The diversity of forms we can perceive in the candlesticks and candelabras for domestic use, coming from goldsmiths’ centres of Austria, Germany and the Duchy of Warsaw. Hanukkah lights and candle holders that are used by Jews during religious ceremonies are original because of their shape and purpose.
The next halls present our most important collection completed by the souvenirs of Ignacy Łukasiewicz, creator of the paraffin lamp and the oil industry, who made Galicia famous at the time. The lamps collected in the museum were made in the years 1860-1950 in numerous global factories: Austrian, German, Hungarian, French, English, American and Polish. They represent the successive stages in the development of paraffin lighting, from the model of the first paraffin lamp to the various objects used for lighting residential, public and industrial interiors. The most popular in the collection is the table lamp, named portable too. All the collection makes the individualistic presentation of styles that dominated in arts and crafts during the period of the greatest popularity of paraffin lamps (1860-1920). The lamps produced in the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries are the most glamorous. They distinguish themselves from the diversity of shapes, colours and materials and decorative techniques. Especially displayable are the lounge lamps with richly decorated bodies, made of precious materials, topped with glass shades of tulip shape.
A crucial group of exhibits in the exhibition consists of special lamps and lanterns as well as lighting and heating devices, fires, cookers and heaters for technical purposes. Their universal and widespread use clearly shows how important the invention of paraffin was in the progress of civilization in the 19th and 20th century. The last exposition consists of a rich collection of electric lamps. The oldest and the most valuable date from the last quarter of the 19th century.
Art Gallery
The exposition presents paintings, sculptures, handicrafts and examples of historic furniture from the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century
It is located within two rooms with an exceptionally artistic atmosphere emphasised by typical renaissance barrel vaults with lunettes. The exhibition is divided into two parts. The first of them presents art monuments from Krosno and its surroundings from the mid-19th century to the 1930s. The objects collected here are the most valuable heritage among the preserved remembrance of the artistic life of the Krosno region. The paintings presented here are the works of art of the prominent artists associated with the region including Matejko’s alumni who studied in the Cracovian School of Fine Arts as well as foreign academies: Seweryn Bieszczad (1852-1923) – the prominent watercolourist named “the Canaletto from Krosno”, Stanisław Bergman (1862-1930) – the resident of Krosno and the enthusiast of history painting, Franciszek Daniszewski (1858-1922) – the founder of the artistic-painting and photographic institution “Artistry” in Krosno and the artistic group with the same name and Aleksander Augustynowicz (1865-1944) who created the generic paintings. In this part of the exposition, there are also presented paintings of Kazimierz Olpiński (1876-1936) who created landscapes, mainly of Podolia, the Beskid Mountains and the territory of Huculszczyzna.
The second part of the permanent exhibition is located within the next hall and shows Krosno’s artistic work of the 20th century
It is necessary to emphasise the important role of the creative environment from Krosno and its surroundings in the middle of the 20th century. In 1945 in Krosno there was established the Professional Association of Visual Artists and it was the first one in post-war Poland. It came into being from the initiative of the painter Zdzisław Truskolaski who organized the first after war exhibition of paintings (March 1945) and so-called “Spring salon” (June 1945).
Furthermore, he started to issue a periodical “Art and life”, he established the art School here, but above all, he promoted the approximation of art by organizing the exhibitions available for the wide audience and encouraging the artists to work actively in their art and the society. Paintings by the following artists are presented here: Bronisław Olszewski (1874-1959) who was the master of portrait and the teacher of drawing in the Real school in Krosno, Zdzisław Truskolaski (1899-1949), Stanisław Kochanek (1905-1995) – the remarkable painter, sculptor, scenographer and caricaturist, Władysław Niepokój (1905-1985) the propagator of realistic painting, Jan Ekiert (1907-1993) working on French soil who painted a lot, creating the compositions ideally combining refined colour, proportions and sensitive observation of nature and Jan Jankiewicz (1911-1987), the excellent landscapist. The work of sculptors also deserves a separate mention.
These are Andrzej Lenik (1864-1929) who led his artistic and sculpting studio in Krosno that specialized in sacral art and sculpture and Władysław Kandefer – representing the realistic trend, who created wood carvings, metalwork and medallion making. The permanent art exposition prepared by the Art Department has undoubtedly high educational-artistic value. Its intentional goal is to show the advantages of the exhibits on display as well as to inform and evoke historic facts about evolving art in the Krosno background.
Glass from the Subcarpathian Glassworks
The oldest glass items discovered in Poland date back to the Early Iron Age (700-300 BC)
The beginnings of Polish glassmaking go back to the 10th-13th century; there were production centres on Wolin Island and at Opole and Kruszwica. Poland’s economic growth of the 16th-18th century and the rising demand for glass contributed to the foundation of numerous glassworks located on crown lands, church property, and estates owned by the local nobility. Under foreign rule when Poland was partitioned (1795-1918) new glassworks would be founded by private landowners and leased out, catering for local needs and using their supply of raw materials and peasant labour. In Subcarpathia, glassworks of this type were established in the 18th century at Olchowiec near Sanok, Samoklęski and Krempna near Nowy Żmigród; and at the beginning of the 19th century in Polany and Borownica near Sanok (in operation until 1905).
After regaining independence, numerous glassmaking centres appeared in Poland in the Subcarpathia, including two glass factories in operation until today – one in Krosno (founded in 1919) and Jasło (1928). The Krosno glassworks, which started production on 24th January 1924, was owned by the shareholders’ company called Polskie Huty Szkła w Krakowie (Polish Glassworks in Cracow), with its registered office in Krosno. The Jasło glassworks was originally owned by the Baruch Margulies and Zygmunt Bogleiter company, which was subsequently sold to new proprietors several times.
The end of the 1960s saw the enlivenment of the Krosno glassmaking business. New works producing glass owned by private investors, often former employees of the Krosno glassworks started appearing on the map. The biggest ones include J.D.M. Kazana in Dobieszyn, the glassworks Deco-Glass, Józefina, Makora and Mika Glass in Krosno and Sabina in Rymanów. After numerous reorganisations, the Krosno Glassworks, now trading as Krosno Glass S.A. is still the largest producer of glass in Poland. The exhibition presents the artistic, decorative and decorative-household glassware made of soda-lime glass. The locally produced glass is hand-blown, by the most ancient method of glassmaking, which requires a high level of expert knowledge on the part of the glassblower – how glass behaves when it is formed and cooled down. Mastering this art allows for decorating the hot molten glass while it is being shaped.
Famous for its quality…
For many years Subcarpathian glassware has enjoyed a good reputation with domestic and foreign customers for its high quality. It can be found in numerous museum collections, it is used in embassies and by many national institutions. Subcarpathian glass products have been awarded a number of prizes at international exhibitions and trade fairs. The designers’ talent, the skills of the glassblowers and decorators, as well as the professional expertise of the technical staff are a guarantee that the quality of the Subcarpathian glass products always meet the very best standards of excellence.
The exhibition is supplemented by glassware in the style of Art Nouveau and Art Déco made in renowned glass factories from the territories of Poland as well as Europe, operating before the foundation of the first glass factory in Krosno.
Film
Najstarszy film
o Krośnie
Krosno 1929. You are not familiar with this town bustling with life, nor with the faces of people preoccupied with their affairs in the market square. They were wiped out by the winds of history. Warren Blumenfeld, a descendant of the Jews from Krosno, saved them from oblivion and brought them back home. For his grandfather, Szymon Mahler, son of the Krosno butchers who migrated to New York, these single film frames immortalising his loved ones for decades were the most precious relics.
Watch the oldest film about Krosno.
Zobacz najstarszy film o Krośnie.