THE PALACE OF CULTURE COMES ALIEVE!!!

THE PALACE OF CULTURE-emblematic image of the city and of the country as

well-houses four big museums:the Art Museum,the Moldavian History Museum,the Ethnographic Museum of Moldavia, "Stefan Procopiu" Science and Technique Museum,together with the Regional Restoration-Conservation Laboratory and "Gheorghe Asachi" Public Library.

Each museum includes in its collection valuable items of the national cultural heritage,which is part of the world's heritage;on the other hand,visitors can admire many remarkable items of the universal culture and civilisation;this were obtained by acquisitions or cultural exchanges.

"STEFAN PROCOPIU" Science and Technique

MUSEUM includes several sections among which the one presenting the musical devices enjoys European importance.Some of them function according to the priciples of the aeolian harp (realized in England,during the 10th century) and of the viola (French creation of the 10th century);they are not only graphically represented,but also by an exhibit discovered in the department of Suceava.

THE ART MUSEUM is organized on the basis of the collections from the first Painting Gallery in Romania,inaugurated in 1860.Its patrimony consists in works of the Italian,Spanish,French,Flemish,Dutch,German,Austrian,Swiss,Czech,Russian,Bulgarian,Polish schools.

There couldn't miss the Romanian artists' paintings which became part of the world's patrimony.They are signed by D. Stahi,Theodor Aman,St. Luchian, N. Grigorescu, I. Andreescu,Th. Pallady, Gh. Petrascu, D. Paciurea, N. Tonitza, Al. Ciucurencu, C. Baba, I. Irimescu, etc.Out of the more than 8,000 paintings,almost 1,000 belong to the national and universal patrimony.

The museum also houses axhibitions of great contemporary artists from Holland,Egypt,Germania,France,Sweden,Czech Republic,Slovenia,etc.

THE MOLDAVIAN HISTORY MUSEUM owns a patrimony of more than 35,000 objects from various fields:archaeology,numismatics,decorative art,ancient books,documents,etc and here follows a short presentation of the most important exhibits.

THE ETHNOGRAPHIC MUSEUM of Moldavia owns collections of more than 11,oo0 objects representative for the Romanians' civilization and spirituality,the main occupations being:agriculture,breeding,harvesting,fishing.Every object in the museum or in the storehouse constitutes an unique item both in Romania and abroad,constituting the contribution of the Romanian people to the word's culture and civilization.

THE CARILLON,that is a set of bells sounded by pin cylinders on which a melody was recorded,is encountered in the towers of big cities.The first carillon was made in 1437,at Dunkerque.The one in the central tower of the Palace of Culture was realized at the beginning of the 20th century and it is conceived to play every sharp hour "Hora Unirii" (The Romanian Union Ring Dance"),which is the symbol of modern Romania.

The musical boxes represent a Swiss invention of the 18th century.The museum collection owns 10 such devices,dated to the 19th century,among which mention should be made of the one playing 12 Romanian songs,but also of the exhibit made in 1864,at Geneva.

The clocks with musical mechanism,the musical albums or icons are based on the same principle.One should notice the musical clock designed in 1875 at Vienna.