The Governor's Museum in Orenburg dates back to the first half of the 19th century. Today it combines local history and historical collections. During the existence of the museum, a large number of rare exhibits were collected that made up the golden fund of the exposition, many of them were found in archaeological expeditions around the Orenburg region.
History
The Orenburg Governor's Museum of Local History has appeared on a private initiative and has become one of the first museum sites in Russia. A public exposition was opened in 1830 at the Neplyuyev Military School. Nine years later, with the advent of the new governor V.A. Petrovsky, part of the collections were transferred to the premises of the Noble Assembly of Orenburg, where in 1839 the museum of local history was opened. Its first director was V.I. Dahl, an outstanding public and statesman, linguist and scientist.
The reform of the administrative apparatus abolished the post of governor-general, in connection with which museum values were transferred to several institutions in the city. In 1887, a specially created council was engaged in the restoration of funds and the search for new rarities. In May 1897, the doors of the historical and archaeological museum were opened in Orenburg, which gathered a small exposition. During the Civil War, part of the museum’s funds was temporarily evacuated to Orenburg, with the end of the war the collections returned to the city.
In 1919, the Orenburg Museum of History and Local Lore was opened in the building where the officer meeting had previously been located. A year later, the city was declared the capital of the autonomous republic of Kyrgyzstan, and the museum received the status of the regional museum of Kyrgyzstan. In 1925, the capital of the republic was moved to the city of Kyzyl-Orda, and therefore republican institutions were transferred to the new administrative center. The museum collections were divided, exhibits related to the Orenburg province remained in Orenburg, and it so happened that the lion's share of the rarities collection and library were left in Kyzyl-Orda.
Recent story
Since 1934, the Orenburg Governor's Museum of Local History was in the status of a regional museum. Before the end of the Second World War, the museum was under reconstruction and repair, the existing collections were preserved. The opening took place in 1946, the audience was invited to inspect three halls - historical, natural history and socialist construction.
From 1988 to 1994, restoration work was carried out in the Orenburg Governor's Museum of History and Local Lore, new expositions were planned. In September 1994, the halls of the museum were reopened for citizens and visitors. Currently, it is housed in a unique historical building - the house of the merchant Enikutsev. The mansion is a historical and architectural heritage. In the halls of the museum there are exhibits telling about the flora and fauna of the region, the development of the city and the region in the past and present.
Valuable collections and exhibits
At the present stage, the governor’s museum of local history of Orenburg stores more than 100 thousand unique items in its collections. The most valuable collections are Golden Sewing, Ancient Musical Instruments, National Costumes and other collections. The permanent part of the exposition is devoted to local history and tells about the history of the region, province, city. The main part of the stands is devoted to the history of the Orenburg Cossacks, trade relations, the development of scientific and cultural spheres.
The Orenburg Governor's Historical and Governor's Museum has unique rarities - a genuine posthumous mask of A.S. Pushkin, a collection of sabers donated at different times by the Empresses Catherine and Elizaveta, the Cossacks of the Orenburg region, the mortar of the Pugachevsky army and many others. The most important and valuable exhibit is the book - one of the copies of the Ostrog Bible, the work of the first printer Fedorov, dated 1581. A rare edition was donated to the museum by one of the locals.
The total exhibition area occupies almost 893 square meters; more than 900 square meters are allocated for the storage facilities. More than 42 thousand people visit the Orenburg Museum of History and Local Lore annually. The museum stores about 120 thousand historical objects, most of them relate to fixed assets.
The cultural center hosts various significant events - presentations, conferences, exhibitions. An important and attended annual event was the presentation of the traditional All-Russian Pushkin Prize to young writers “Captain's Daughter”.
Excursions
In GBUK Orenburg Governor's Museum of History and Local Lore for the visitors developed excursions:
- “Meet the Museum” - a review of the permanent exhibition.
- "Historical mosaic" - an interactive tour, an overview of rare exhibits.
- “In the Stone Age” - an excursion to the stands, where the minerals found in archaeological expeditions are represented.
- “Fauna of the Orenburg Region” is an interactive tour telling about the animals and birds of the region.
- "Reserves" - a story about existing reserves, natural parks, natural monuments.
- Sightseeing tour of the stands of the permanent exhibition of the museum.
- "History of the Orenburg region" - the foundation, development of the city, province.
- "Noble bargaining" - the history of the development of commercial affairs, the story of famous merchants, financiers of the region.
- “Pugachevsky Uprising” - the history of Pugachevschina, a chronology of events, a story about the main characters.
- "History of the Cossacks" - the development of the people, especially culture, life, feats of the Cossacks in wartime.
- "Sarmatians" - a story about the nomadic tribes of warlike Sarmatians, held in archaeological halls.
- The Golden Pantry is an overview of the collection found in the Philippine royal necropolis.
Schedule and prices
The museum staff has developed a number of original tours that expand knowledge about the history of the region, its heroes, as well as telling about individual items stored in the funds. Every year the museum holds theme parties, exhibitions and cultural events. Educational programs are being implemented for children and students, designed to expand academic curricula with new knowledge.
Schedule of the Orenburg Governor's Museum of History and Local Lore:
- Monday and Tuesday are non-working days.
- On Thursdays - from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m.
- On the remaining days of the week - from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (Wed, Fri, Sat, Fri).
Photos of the Orenburg Governor's Museum of Local History convincingly talk about the wealth of expositions, the variety of collections and interesting narratives of the guides. Entrance ticket for adults costs 150 rubles, for pensioners and children under 16 years, entrance to the halls is free. Excursion services for adults - 800 rubles, for children - 400 rubles, for pensioners and students a system of discounts.
A separate tariff is valid for the thematic excursion “Golden Fund. Archeology". A visit is possible in a group of no more than 15 people, the cost of tickets for adults is 400 rubles, for children - 40 rubles, students pay 150 rubles per person. Duration of excursions from 40 minutes.
Helpful information
The Orenburg Governor's Museum of History and Local Lore is located at: Sovetskaya Street, room No. 28.
From the railway station to the museum you can get the following modes of transport:
- By bus of routes No. 31.57T, 7T, 19, 52.31 or by trolleybus of route No. 7 (bus stop “House of Life”).
- By bus No. 156 or 56 to the stop "Drama Theater".
The museum provides a number of services - celebrating a birthday, conducting informative thematic quests, meaningful master classes and much more for children and adults.