National History Museum, Chisinau

The National History Museum of Moldova is probably one of the best places in Chișinău to get a sense of just how many layers of history this country has.

Before we go inside, let's stop for a moment in front of the building and look for the bronze Capitoline Wolf. As you can see, this statue shows the twins Romulus and Remus being suckled by the legendary she-wolf of Rome. Chișinău received an earlier version of this statue in the 1920s, during the period when Bessarabia was part of Romania. The statue then disappeared in 1940, and what you see today is a copy installed in 1990.

The museum itself was established in 1983 and moved into this building a few years later. Originally, the site was occupied by a Boys’ Gymnasium. After the old structure was badly damaged by the 1977 earthquake, it was demolished and rebuilt in 1987, while preserving the appearance of the historic façade.

Once inside, we can follow Moldova’s story from prehistoric times through the medieval period, as well as further into the 19th and 20th centuries and the modern era. The museum has 12 exhibition halls, with a total of 350,000 objects in its collection. These include archaeological finds, ancient coins, documents, photographs, weapons, books, clothing, decorative art, and everyday household items.

In my opinion, you don’t need to study each and every display to enjoy the museum. I’d suggest choosing the periods that interest you the most and taking your time with them. The archaeological and numismatic collections are particularly strong, and the changing temporary exhibitions often give you a reason to come back.

I personally would recommend the Treasury section with its precious-metal objects as the one worth looking out for. Another distinctive exhibit is the large diorama devoted to the Iași-Chișinău military operation during WW2.

For practical planning, the museum currently offers guided tours in Romanian, Russian, and English by advance reservation. It is open from 10 am to 6 pm from April through October, and from 10 am to 5 pm between November and March, with Mondays closed.