National History Museum of Transylvania

Event title: Night of Museums

Locations:

National History Museum of Transylvania - main location (Cluj-Napoca) National History Museum of Transylvania - Collection of Pharmacy History (Cluj-Napoca) National History Museum of Transylvania – Ethno-Archaeology Museum „Petre Poruţiu” Iclod

Telephone: 004 0264.595.677 E-mail: secretariat@mnit.ro www.mnit.ro, http://mnit-cutiacucomori.blogspot.ro

Free access

National History Museum of Transylvania - main location (Cluj-Napoca) Address: C. Daicoviciu St. no. 2, Cluj-Napoca, temporary exhibition room, second floor Night of Museums Program: 20.00 - 24.00

Wunderkammer THE CABINET OF CURIOSITIES. An exhibition experiment

During the last years, several museums in Romania have renewed their exhibition areas and collection display methods. The National History Museum of Transylvania goes through a similar process of rethinking its permanent exhibition and this made us focus on the history of collections and on collecting in general. The present exhibition is the result of this introspection and it attempts to recreate the atmosphere of the first collections of objects deemed interesting, namely of the Cabinets of Curiosities (Wunderkammern). These cabinets included objects that European collectors found curious, exotic, or extraordinary. Starting from the special interest that the public expressed towards some of the items in the collection of the National History Museum of Transylvania, we chose to present them here, some for the first time, together with other objects meant to recreate the atmosphere of the cabinets of curiosities. The entire exhibition focuses on five main items: a metal object discovered in Aiud, the Tablets of Tărtăria, a medieval appliqué with alchemical symbols discovered in Vinţu de Jos, two Roman glass objects (gutti), and two Egyptian amulets (Djed pillars). One can consider these objects as curiosities according to one or more criteria: uncertain context of discovery, controversial dating, uncertain function or material, or debated interpretation of the depictions they carry. The exhibition aims at objectively presenting what is known and what remains unknown about these objects. We do not intend to offer definitive solutions, but simply to satisfy the public’s curiosity and to raise debates on the topic.

National History Museum of Transylvania - Collection of Pharmacy History (Cluj-Napoca) Address: 28 Piaţa Unirii, Cluj-Napoca Night of Museums Program: 20.00 - 24.00

National History Museum of Transylvania – Ethno-Archaeology Museum „Petre Poruţiu” Iclod Address: Ethno-Archaeology Museum „Petre Poruţiu” Iclod, DN 1C, Iclod, Cluj Night of Museums Program: 10.00-20.00

Partners: Şapte Seri, Art Act Magazine, RNMR, Primăria şi Consiliul local Iclod, Muzeul de Etno-arheologie „Petre Poruţiu” Iclod

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