The National Museum will open eight permanent exhibitions in 2019 and 2020

Prague - The National Museum (NM) in Prague will open eight permanent exhibitions from natural sciences and historical fields in its historic and new buildings in 2019 and 2020. Some topics have not been addressed by the NM in its exhibitions so far. Approximately 80,000 collection items will be displayed over an area of 12,000 square meters, some for the first time. The total budget for preparing the permanent exhibitions is 483 million crowns. NM director Michal Lukeš informed journalists about this today.

From the shape of the exhibitions that visitors were familiar with until 2011, the NM will retain the sperm whale and part of the mineralogical exhibition, which has been declared a cultural monument. It thus became a monumentally protected part of the museum's historic building, which will be partially opened after reconstruction on October 27 of this year. Admission will be free until the end of the year.

In the spring of 2019, a complete occupancy of the historic building is expected. Starting in November of next year, visitors will be able to see the exhibition sections Nature and Wonders of Evolution there. At the same time, two other themes will be on display in the New Building - 20th Century History and Children's Museum. A separate exhibition space will become the multimedia Connecting Corridor, which will also be accessible from 2019. Additional exhibitions will open in June 2020. In the Historical Building, the exhibitions will be unified around the theme of History, as well as the theme People: Humanity, Society, and Culture in the Past, and the Treasure Room and Coin Cabinet.

Among the most expensive exhibits will be the diamond necklace of Naděžda Kramářová or the collection box that collected money for the construction of the National Theatre.

"We are well aware that visiting a museum is not just about viewing exhibitions. Therefore, we are preparing a system of relaxation zones, places for child visitors, cafes, bookstores, and souvenir shops throughout the complex. In particular, the covered courtyards of the historic building of the National Museum will be prepared for the relaxation needs of visitors," said director Lukeš. The area of these spaces will be 4,000 square meters.

The general renovation of the National Museum began in 2015, but the old building was closed for several years before that due to preparations. The original plan was to open the entire museum for the centenary of the establishment of Czechoslovakia. However, the progress of the work in the first half was hindered, for example, by extensive damage to murals in the Pantheon, an archaeological find, the discovery of asbestos, inconsistencies in the project documentation, and changes required by conservationists.

The price for the reconstruction has been reduced from the original amount of 2.4 billion without tax to the current estimated 1.8 billion crowns.