Muzeul Național de Istorie a Moldovei (National History Museum of Moldova)

What you'll see

The display covers, chronologically, the history of the land between the Prut and the Dniester, from antiquity to the contemporary period, with archaeological artefacts, documents, photographs and early printed books. It is the most complete reading of the subject available in one place and, if you have only a day in Chișinău, it is the museum that most changes how you see the rest of the city.

The sections on the twentieth century — the war, the deportations, the Soviet period, independence — are the ones that give meaning to the monuments you pass in the street. Allow between an hour and a half and two hours. The full context is developed in the history section.

Getting there

The address is 121A Strada 31 August 1989, one street from Ștefan cel Mare și Sfânt Boulevard, the main artery. From anywhere in the centre you can walk there in a few minutes. The entrance is marked as wheelchair-accessible, but the toilet is not adapted. Parking in the area is on-street and limited.

When to go

The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 18:00, with Monday as the closing day — a detail that matters, because the other national museums are also closed on Mondays. The quietest window is the morning, just after opening. Being entirely indoors, it is the right sight for a rainy day or the middle of a summer's day.

What to combine it with

A few dozen metres away, on the same street, is the National Art Museum of Moldova, and ten minutes' walk away, the National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History. The three form the capital's museum quarter and can fill a whole day without transport.

If you want the exhibition to continue out in the city, the logical route after the visit takes in the Deportees' Monument and the „Eternitate” Memorial Complex. Guided routes are in the tours and excursions section, places to eat in the centre in the restaurants section, and the rest of the sights in the Chișinău guide.