MUSEUM

The museum will be closed from August 28th onwards for the reform of the permanent exhibition. The new permanent exhibition will be opened to public in 2011.

 

The Orthodox Church Museum, which was established in Kuopio in 1957, derives from the Collection of Ancient Objects founded at the Monastery of Valamo in 1911. Most of the exhibits, which consist mainly of icons, sacred objects and liturgical textiles, are from the monasteries and congregations of Karelia: a region in southeast Finland that was partially ceded to the Soviet Union in connection with the Second World War. Objects in the museum are mainly from the 18th and 19th centuries.

 

In addition to the permanent exhibitions, the museum offers yearly seasonal exhibitions. These theme-based exhibitions are aimed to introduce the variety of ecclesiastical art of eastern Christian Church.

 

The virtual exhibition is built in accordance to the physical frames of the museum building: icons and sacred objects are displayed upstairs, liturgical textiles downstairs.