Svidník Open-Air Museum (Museum of Ukrainian Culture)

The Ethnographic Open-Air Exhibition (Národopisná expozícia v prírode) in Svidník is the open-air museum of the Museum of Ukrainian Culture, part of the Slovak National Museum. It is the best place in Slovakia to see how the Rusyn-Ukrainians of the Low Beskids and the Prešov region lived: on a slope above the town amphitheatre, on about 11 hectares, nearly 50 buildings of folk architecture and more than 10,000 ethnographic objects have been brought together.

Work on the open-air museum began in 1975, and it opened to visitors in the early 1980s. The buildings were moved from surrounding villages and re-erected according to documentation, so every cottage has its "home" village. The log houses contain folk furniture, household utensils and working tools, while the granaries, barns and stables hold carts, ploughs, harrows, grain bins and baskets. These are not "old-style" stage sets but genuine monuments of folk architecture, moved from specific villages of north-eastern Slovakia – each with its own story.

What to see

• The Church of St Paraskeva from Nová Polianka (1766) – the centrepiece of the museum. A three-part wooden church with three log sections and three shingled domes, plus a separate bell tower. After the Second World War it fell into decay; it was dismantled in 1961 and in 1986 moved to the museum and rebuilt. The 18th-century iconostasis comes from the village of Pravrovec near Medzilaborce. The church was consecrated in 1993 and services are held there.
• Farmsteads from Uličské Krivé (mid-18th century), Snakov, Rovné, Osturňa, Nižné Repaše, Jakubany and other villages – from smoke huts under thatch to later log houses.
• Technical monuments by the stream: a water mill from Bogliarka, a water-powered sawmill and a fulling mill from Livov; there is also a windmill and a smithy.
• A village fire station from Nižné Repaše, a wooden school of 1928 from Kurov, a seasonal dwelling from the high mountain clearings of Litmanová and a shepherd's hut from Zavadka.
• A coaching inn with a carriage shed from the early 19th century.

Next door, the amphitheatre hosts the annual Festival of Rusyn-Ukrainian Culture in Slovakia – that is when the open-air museum is at its liveliest.

Practical information

The open-air museum is on the western edge of Svidník, above the amphitheatre (Festivalová Street), about one and a half kilometres from the museum's main building on Centrálna Street. Svidník lies on road I/21 from Prešov to the Dukla Pass; there is no railway in the town, so it is easier to come by car or bus. The museum is open all year, daily, with the longest hours from May to September; an adult ticket costs €6, and refugees from Ukraine enter free of charge. Allow at least 1.5–2 hours: the grounds are large and on a slope, with dirt and gravel paths, so wear comfortable shoes – it is hard going with a pushchair. Children love it here – they can peek into every cottage, the school and the mill. Photography is allowed for a small extra fee.

Nearby: trails and peaks

A few hundred metres from the museum runs the Pred Čuntavou – Dukliansky Pass route, while the short Svidník – Baňa path is good for an evening stroll. In the town centre are the main exhibition of the Museum of Ukrainian Culture in Svidník and the Dezider Milly Gallery with its icons. To see such a church in its original setting, drive to the Wooden Church of St Michael the Archangel, Ladomirová (about 6 km), a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Official website: snm.sk

Photos: Henryk Bielamowicz, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Palickap, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.