National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History in Chisinau

Favorite museum from Moldova. The variety of exhibits could interest anyone, regardless of the field they’re interested in. This museum incorporates biological, geological, political, historical, cultural and artistic exhibits, and it also has its own botanical garden. Virtually, there is something to everyone’s taste. I would recommend taking a guide.

Dear Colleagues, there is probably little funding, so the renovation of the National Museums ethnographic branchs unconceptualized, outdated exhibition without subtitles in English is still a task. But what is not a question of money: an unfriendly non-English-speaking staff member is sitting at the cash desk, he is not aware of the acceptable tickets (he didnt even look at the ICOM card, he rejected it). This could be changed. In contrast, none of this was a problem in their History Museum.

Friendly staff and great exhibition

It was an amazing day visiting this wonderful museum.

Badly maintained place and rude personnel however i rated this a 3-star because it has some cool features about Moldova and its culture in here.

Out of date text, written mostly in Russian. Bored staff, poorly designed exhibitions

Museum full of artifacts and information on Moldova, unfortunately a poorly maintained. extremely rude staff! rude and not interested in tourists! we had to go out 20 minutes before closing!

Amazing place. It has a series of exhibits that are in a very chronological order. There is not much in English but you can tell easily what each item is.

Probably one of the best museums in Chișinău since the number of items on display is quite large.

My favourite museum of Chisinau. Great architecture, lovely garden. The events organized here are very popular. And, to my mind, it is the best museum for kids.

Awesome place, very cheap and interesting, even for kids

Awesome museum to visit.

Verry interesting. Certainly worth to visit

In winter works till the 17:00

Very nice

Gorgeous building. Inside it covers both natural history as well as ethnography. This means there are lots of displays of types of soil, stuffed animals and birds and fossils and so on. There is also an enormous mammoth skeleton that is quite impressive. If, like me you main interest is in local vernacular crafts you wont be disappointed, though it is not the main focus. There is a large display of local costume featuring beautiful embroidery, wood carving, basket weaving etc, which is lovely but it is distinctive versus the surrounding countries? Thats beyond my level of appreciation.

Too bad this beautiful museum is slowly being overpowered by the years. Its a beautiful building and a very interestingly collection of heritage items

Definetely a good place to visit. You can admire the local traditional dressings, instruments, flora and fauna

A surprisingly good experience.A folklore, tradition and natural history museum that is a must.I enjoyed every minute in it.

The museum itself was wonderful! Full of interesting exhibits and it was displayed well. However, the staff was very rude and insisted you move through the rooms at their discretion. You could not just wander. They watched your every move and a couple were grumbling that we had come in later in the day. As we left rooms, one lady was shutting off the lights behind us. Certainly not hospitable! Plus, they charge per person to take pictures and then make you wear a tag stating you paid to take pictures.

One of the most impressive sights in Chisnau which must visit! It is the oldest museum in the Republic of Moldova, functioning at the moment. The building so spectacular either outside and inside that you can spent extra time just for seeing it beauty. Museum has retained two specific areas – the study of the nature and culture of Bessarabia. There’re enormous quantity of exhibition items for contemplation of each you might spent all day. And this totally worth it since it has really unique exhibits.

From outside, it seems almost like abandoned building. But as you enter, it is packed with various very interesting exhibits of Moldovan culture and wildlife. Also its great place for kids. Very great visual experience.

Very cool museum with a lot of traditional tools and clothes. It also has some more special rooms, which you can find about while visiting

Definitely worth a visit. Take the time to actually read the notes because once you do, then it really captures your attention.Lots of unique things displayed and the building itself is very fascinating.

Old style museum. Nothing changed there for the past 50 years for sure. Some exhibitions are interesting and it feels like you ended up in a place where the time doesnt exist at all.But it all doesnt matter when you interact with the staff. It feels like you came uninvited into their house. Also, dont you dare coming only one hour before the closing, they will ruin your visit completely, following you everywhere, counting the minutes you have left.

Museum of Ethnography and Nature is the first Moldovan museum. It was founded in 1889 by baron Steward, and during the 20th century it used to be the laboratory for the local scientists: F. Ostermann, S. Miller, F. Porouchik, I. Sukhov, B. Taraboukhin, M. Pocoara and others.Building of the Museum was constructed in 1905, and its Neo Mauritian style is unique in Moldova.The photographs are part of Muziotopia project (2009that I have did in close collaboration with KSA:K (Contemporary Art Centre Chisinauand Stefan Russo- curator. The theme of the Muziotopia project was the visual representation of national identity through heritage museums

Some of the cultural exhibits are interesting, but the staff are extremely irritable and rude. I asked for the bathroom, was given annoyed and vague answers, and when I asked if there was a place to get paper, the lady yelled at me about where I’m from and told me that the bathroom was “not my business.” I arrived with nearly an hour before closing but the staff followed me nearly every room to remind me about the time, and did not like that I wanted to see the place at my pace in an order I enjoyed, and literally yelled at me for visiting the museum incorrectly. With 30 min still left they started making a big show of turning off the room lights after each place I visited. I’ve never felt so unwanted or uncomfortable in a museum. If you visit just come super early and don’t interact with anyone inside.

Very nice museum for a visit of 1 or 2 hours. You can see an overview of the animals of Moldova, the fossils and bones of prehistoric animals and the development of human culture of Moldova. The entrance fee is extremely low, there is a small additonal fee if you want to take pictures or videos. Highly recommended.

Best place that describes history of territory between Prut and Dnister, from palaeolithic till present, national costume, flora and fauna. Recommend this place as one of must being visited in Chisinau.

Very cheap entrance fee and the whole Moldova history is right in this place!

Wonderful exhibitions covering a broad spectrum of history,. There were thankfully English explanations on much of the exhibits.

Super cool museum with natural history and Moldovan culture. One star gone because the personnel were rather rude to us

It certainly covers natural history, and then narrows the focus to Moldova history. Little information is given in English. I wouldnt say its a must-see, but its nice to go

Best museum in Chisinau.

An interesting museum, many exhibits on display, more than 15 halls, many different animals and old books and decorations. The only thing is, there is no ethnographic project on the territory. Entry costs about 20 lei.

I liked it very much. Many interesting objects and things to see and learn

Very nice museum full of surprising decor and quirks

Great museum! The interior and exterior architecture is just breathtaking. In case you are wondering, it is called pseudo-moorish. Very interesting displays. It cost us 10 lei to get access. (adult fare)

Charming museum covering cultural, biological and natural history (without bekng too bigin a very nice building. The entrance ticket was 10-20 lei.

Interesting museum but there isnt a logic between the rooms, its very mixed. You have to pay an extra to take pictures.

1 € entrance fee,Close to city center,Parking places enough arround along the street,Rich museum with animals and traditional objects.

If you are Chișinău ..its a must!! A big museum with a lot of things to see.

The best museum in Chisinau.If you want to know about Moldovan history, its ironic but this museum is better than the history muesum of Moldova.

Must visit in Chisinau. Wonderful museum to spend time with your kids or to visit if youre a tourist. Plenful information and exponats. Amazing building, inspiring.

Really cool places to get to know more about Moldova ! 10Lei for those who has student card, plus 5-10Lei for those who bring camera or want to take pictures within the museum. Really worth to visit !

The museum unfortunately is not too well taken care of. Its dusty and the staff was pretty rude.

Very beautiful place in Moldova, its special.

들어갔는데 저한테 일본인이냐고 물어보셔서 아니라고 대답하고.. 다들 할머니들이 일하고 계셔서 그닥 친절하시지는 않으시더라구요.. 그래도 한번쯤 들려볼만한 지리나 지질학 관련 박물관 입니다.So I went inside and one old lady working there asked me "Jap?" Of course it is because they are not fluent in English, but "Jap" is not a good word for calling Japanese. (Feels like N word for them). I am Korean so I dont really care whether they call Japanese as that way but I think they better say "Japanese" instead of "Jap". I mean it was funny for me, not a bad experience for me at least.People working there are 100% old ladies so they can be grumpy when you ask them something even in Romanian.Worth a visit.

This is one of the best museums in Moldova. Follow the exhibits as you explore how nature shapes the culture of Moldova and how Moldovan then shapes the land around them.For the best experience in English I recommend buying a guide book in English from the ticket seller. After the history of the museum and building is explained, the book will guide you through each room of the museum and describe the purpose of the room and the content displayed within.

Beautiful museum.... very mean workers. If it says it closes at 4:00 PM be sure you start to leave at 3:30 PM or youll get yelled at to hurry up. At 3:45 PM the whole place is all but shut down with the workers pushing you out the door...