Moravian Museum (Moravské zemské muzeum)

The 2nd largest and 2nd oldest museum in the Czech Republic

The Moravian Museum is the biggest, as well as the oldest, museum in Moravia. It was established in Brno in 1817 by a decree issued by Emperor Francis I as Františkovo muzeum (the Francis Museum). Currently, it is funded by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic and is a member of the Czech Association of Museums and Galleries.

Its collections contain over six million objects across the range of the natural and social sciences, and one of its most famous pieces is the Venus of Dolní Věstonice.

The Moravian Museum creates collections, conducts research, publishes texts, organizes exhibitions, lectures, and excursions, and works with young people. It administers several buildings used as exhibition spaces. In Brno are located:

• Dietrichsteinský palác (the Dietrichstein Palace),
• Biskupský dvůr (the Bishop’s Courtyard),
• the Mendelianum,
• Palác šlechtičen (the Palace of Noble Ladies),
• the Anthropos Pavilion,
• Památník Leoše Janáčka (the Leoš Janáček Memorial),
• and Jiří Gruša House.

Outside of Brno are:

• Památník Bible kralické (the Kralice Bible Memorial) in Kralice nad Oslavou,
• the Old Chateau of Jevišovice,
• the Budišov Chateau,
• the Moravec Chateau,

and Centrum slovanské archeologie (the Centre for Slavonic Archaeology) in Uherské Hradiště.