Museums, Zagreb

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What a treat to come across this on my day in Zagreb - this museum-cum-art installation was mentioned in an in-flight magazine I read once and it had obviously become lodged somewhere in my unconscious as I remembered it as soon as I saw the signpost. According to the website, it's now Zagreb's top attraction.

The Museum of Broken Relationships is essentially a set of rooms housing items which once meant something in a relationship now over. Each of the objects has an explanation with a story, memory or observation along with its country of origin. These notes are usually funny and irreverant (see the 'intimate soap' now being used as a cleaning product by someone's mum), frequently a bit disturbing (the axe purchased to chop an errant lover's furniture into pieces) and occasionally very sad (stories of love in wartime Sarajevo and a secret interracial relationship in Malaysia). You could read them for many absorbed hours or just flit around the objects that catch your eye.

The project toured the world before settling in its present location, and the artifacts do reflect this, with certain places being very well represented. They also seem to over-represent young, well-travelled things - I lost count of all the 'my boyfriend was Chinese, I'm from Germany and we met at university in Peru'-type tales - but since I'm one of those (or was) who am I to complain.

Entry is 25 kuna (20 for students and OAPs) and you can pay by card. There is also a cafe and gifts to buy.

Fun and different, and expertly set out. Worth a look if you're in the area.

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The Technical Museum will delight anybody who has the faintest interest in matters technological. It is an absolute cornucopia of anything mechanical. There are locomotives, old cars, trams, fighter planes, boats, old fire engines, steam engines and even a real submarine. Would you believe they even have a live beehive made out of perspex with a tunnel to the outside world so you can see the bees doing their thing?

I can't even begin to tell you the number of fascinating things in there - perhaps my favourite was the three seater motorbike, I've never seen anything like it in my life.

Admission is inexpensive (I can't remember the exact amount) but your Zagreb card (see seperate tip) attracts a good discount.

When I was there, there were lots of groups of schoolchildren there, and I think any child would love this place.

Perhaps the best way to show you this place is through the photographs, and to this end I have posted a travelogue on eslewhere on this page. This perhaps will give you some idea of what I'm talking about.

An absolute must when in Zagreb.

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Some people say it is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. I know some people who would disagree. And a lot of them have sent their relationship souvenirs to Zagreb's Museum of Broken Relationships. In this little museum visitors can see artifacts from love gown awry- everything from forgotten clothing articles to makeshift breast "implants" to the bicycle used to cycle away from a crumbling relationship to freedom. Spend an hour or two exploring the exhibits and be thankful for your happiness, whether you are alone or part of a couple (or a group, I guess!).

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What kind of magical word is "glyptotheque"? By definition, a glyptotheque is a collection of sculptures, with its name derived from the ancient Greek verb glyptein, meaning "cut into stone." Zagreb's glyptotheque features copies of famous sculptures, as well as a collection of contemporary sculptures in a park outside the museum. The building is a well-preserved red brick former industrial factory.

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Great museum that you should not miss, situated in an old beautiful building on the most beautiful Zagreb Square Zrinjevac, the building alone is interesting enough to visit. The museum is not too big, there are some interesting collections. One of the things you must not miss is Zagreb mummy, Etruscan mummy found in Egypt. The Mummy was found wrapped up in a Etrucan manuscipt, the longest text know in Etrucan language in the world.
This year Croatian Apoxyomenos was finally exhibited. One of 8 bronze Greek sculptures like that in the world, found in 1998 near the island Losinj.

Tip: when you are done with your visit sit down in the Lapidarium in the Museums garden and enjoy your drink while being surrounded with Greek and Roman stone monuments (check photo 4).

PS: the ticket should be quite cheap, student one is 10 kunas.

The Museum of Arts and Crafts is situated right across the National Theater & it's celebrating its 125th anniversary. The Hidden Treasure exhibition represents everything that's been going on in the Museum from its foundation up to today, especially focusing on those unseen items, those who haven't even left the museum storage rooms The exhibits cover everything from paperclips to evening dresses, from the famous Cul de Paris to Alvar Aalto's famous chairs.

Unfortunately, this exhibition is orientated towards local population, so there's nothing written in English [which I find absurd in the 21st century]. However, there are guides who can show you around & another option of calling a machine that tells you an item's story. I went there with a group & we had a really good guide who introduced us some very interesting details...

The exhibition contains some amazing black & white photos, commercials from the advertisement beginnings, the world-wide-known Pag & Lepoglava laces, jewelry, furniture, glass, paintings, graphics, altar statues, cutlery, books, clocks, dishes, souvenirs etc.

The museums permanent exhibition provides a survey of the history of the art styles, forms & techniques that reflect Croatia's economic & cultural life & its background in art production.

From the original idea for it to be "a collection of specimens for master craftsmen and artists who must advance once again the production of utility and artistic objects, so deprived by the appearance of machines and industrial processing", the , with its 160,000 exhibits, today acts as the national museum of artistic production and history of material culture in Croatia. It is located in the building erected for the purpose back in 1888, designed by Hermann Bollé, the famous architect in Historicist style.

This is also one of the must-see buildings in Zagreb. It is situated between HNK and hotel Opera, near the city centre. Not only it's beautiful from the outside,it has a special value inside. It consists of more than 3 750 works including sculptures,paintings, crafts and much, much more.
Don't surprise to see skateboarders in front of it...it's their favourite place to skate.

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It's hard to give an opinion about this museum. I like the building and there are some really nice pieces inside. The thing is that with modern art, you can never know, it's quite subjective, so I guess you should discover it on your own ;)

Quite impressive building from the outside....with nice park full of flowers on the back side...
As for the inside...host of many exhibitions and a restaurant (form the back side...entrance from the park)