Museum of carpet weaving

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In the small village of Nahoryany on the banks of the Dniester, there is a unique carpet weaving museum for Bukovyna. This craft is traditional for the Kelmenets district, but it has developed especially well in Nahoryany. If you come here, you will definitely not regret it - the beautiful landscapes of the Dniester Canyon and the unusual Shyshkovi Hills will definitely impress you with their beauty.

Collection of the carpet weaving museum

The museum is the house of a local craftswoman, Viktoriia Kytaihorodska. She mastered embroidery, spinning threads from hemp and wool, weaving cloth, towels, tablecloths and carpets - traditional types of decorative and applied arts for the Kelmenets region - since childhood. At the age of 12, Viktoriia started weaving, and in a couple of years she received orders even from other villages.

Kelmenets weaving is widely known in Ukraine and abroad and is, so to speak, the "calling card" of this region. Researchers of ethnography and decorative and applied arts say that in many villages of the Kelmenets district, almost every house had a kudela, a reel, and a loom, and every yard grew raw material for weaving. The first large-format work of the artist was the carpet "Roses and Grapes," and in total she is the author of about 200 works, most of which have been exhibited at many collective and personal exhibitions at different times. The geography of these exhibitions is quite wide: Chernivtsi, Lviv, Pirohovo, Moscow, Botoshany (Romania), and Lodz (Poland).

She has placed her best works and those of her fellow villagers on display in her house, where she lives in the summer kitchen. Among other samples, a large wall carpet depicting about 60 wildflowers stands out. Visitors will also be able to learn about the process of weaving such products, examine the tools and try this hard work themselves.

Ms. Viktoriia's work is dominated by floral and floral-geometric ornaments, and recently - by plot compositions. The master works in the technique of assembled threads for multicolor patterns and "on wires" for two-color images. It is worth mentioning the titles of the most famous works by Viktoriia Kytaihorodska: "Brothers", "Bouquet in a Jug", "Wedding Roses", "Nahoryansky Flower", "Glade of Fairy Tales", "Festive Tablecloth", "Saving Madonna", "Taras Shevchenko and the Nightingale". For the first time, the works "Infinity of Flowers" and "The Holy Shepherd" are exhibited, which were woven by the artist especially for her 75th anniversary.

Viktoriia Andriiivna's late husband was a jack of all trades. He built the house himself, decorated the wooden shutters with patterns, and connected the house, kitchen, and even outbuildings with corridors. So when it was raining outside, you could move from one room to another without getting wet. And in the center of the yard is a huge flowerbed with a variety of flowers. The village craftswoman draws inspiration from nature. She looks at different shades of petals, selects the right threads and tries to convey the tenderness and the very soul of the flower on the homespun cloth.

History of the museum

The museum was founded in the 30s of the last century by a local resident Andrii Kytaihorodskyi. He also opened a cloth mill in Nahoryany. His daughter Viktoria Kytaihorodska, who is the owner of the museum to this day, continued the work. She has been fond of weaving since she was 12 years old and not only knows everything about this art, but also enjoys talking about the process of making carpets. Viktoriia's works have been recognized not only at Ukrainian exhibitions, but also in Poland and Romania. The artisans' family gave their personal house for the museum. It looks like a real ethnographic museum. Now Victoria Kitaygorodska is almost 70 years old and lives in the summer kitchen. You can visit the museum free of charge, as long as the hostess is at home. You can ask the locals for any details about the museum and how to get there.

However, sadly, little is being done at the state level to preserve unique art. If it were not for the support of my daughter, who now lives in Chernivtsi, and her friends, it is unknown whether it would have been possible to organize this museum in a village house. Even now it is not listed in any state registers, so only residents of the Kelmenets district know about it. Students with teachers and librarians come here for a tour. Viktoriia Andriiivna is a guide, a cleaner, and a watchman. She does not receive any payment for her work, and the only honor she has been awarded by the government for preserving the national craft is the title of "Master of Folk Art." Viktoriia, a 75-year-old grandmother, still hopes that her museum-hut will be placed under state guardianship, because she can no longer protect the exhibits on her own.

Getting there

The carpet weaving museum is located in the center of the village of Nahoryany in the house of Viktoriia Kytaihorodska. You can get to Nahoryany from Kelmentsi by suburban bus or by your own car, which is the most convenient option. Locals also practice traveling by hitchhiking.

Openinghours of the Museum of Carpet Weaving in Nahoryany: the museum is open every day, it has no specific opening hours, it all depends on the owner of the house, but given her venerable age (over 70 years old), she is almost always at home. Ask the locals for details. The visit is free.