#Exhibit of the Month

Manufactured in 1902 by AG vorm Siedel & Nauman in Dresden, Germany.

Dimensions: Length - 38 cm, Width - 35 cm, Height - 20 cm. Weight - 16 kg. It entered the museum collection in 1984, transferred from the National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History.

The typewriter features a standard carriage mounted on ball bearings and rollers, along with a keyboard equipped with 42 keys. These contain two complete sets of Latin and Cyrillic alphabets, punctuation marks, numbers, and mathematical symbols, enabling the typing of 126 characters. Beneath the metal casing, the type bars are arranged in a fan-like pattern, holding embossed characters and ink ribbon rollers. When the keys are pressed, the type bars strike the inked ribbon, imprinting characters onto the paper tensioned in the machine's roller system.

The side panels are elegantly decorated with refined cast-iron elements in the Art Nouveau style, displaying the brand name - "Ideal." The Polyglott model, featuring a bilingual keyboard patented in the United Kingdom by Max Klaczko from Riga, Latvia, was produced between 1902 and 1913, marking the first typewriter capable of writing in two languages. The "Ideal Polyglott" typewriter was actively sold in the Russian Empire and gained significant popularity in Poland, Bulgaria, and Serbia.
The typewriter - a mechanical device used for printing text directly onto paper - ranks among the most important inventions of the modern era, as it revolutionized communication. From the late 19th century to the early 21st century, it became an indispensable tool, widely used by writers, in offices, for business correspondence, and in private homes. The peak of typewriter sales occurred in the 1950s when the average annual sales in the United States reached 12 million units. In November 2012, the British Brother factory produced what it claimed to be the last typewriter, which was donated to the Science Museum in London.
The advent of computers, word processing software, printers, and the decreasing cost of these technologies led to the typewriter's disappearance from the mainstream market, turning it into a museum exhibit.
June 23 marks Typewriter Day, commemorating the date when American journalist and inventor Christopher Latham Sholes patented his typewriter. This day celebrates the simple yet revolutionary device that has become history, as well as the remarkable literary achievements it has enabled since 1868.

Virtual Tour

Exhibitions

„Republic of Moldova in philately: history and culture”

Dedicated to the Independence Day

August 25th– September 7th, 2014

Philately, part of cultural inheritance, is and will remain a representative element of the country's image into the world. The stamp, a true ambassador of history and traditions, of cultural, national and universal moral values is rightfully considered at international level one of national symbols along with the flag, coat of arms, hymn and coin.

Exhibition „Republic of Moldova in philately: history and culture”

The body responsible for the issue, circulation and retreat from circulation of postal stamps in the Republic of Moldova from 1992 on, after accession to the Universal Postal Union, is the Ministry of Information Technology and Communications. Printing and publishing philatelic material is charged to the State Enterprise "Poșta Moldovei".

The first postal stamps of Republic of Moldova were issued on June 23^rd, 1991 and were dedicated to the first anniversary of the proclamation of sovereignty, bearing statehood attributes - coat of arms and flag of Republic of Moldova.

Moldova was the first former Soviet country to issue its own stamps. From 1991 to date were issued 875 official marks of Republic of Moldova.

The exhibition reunites many philatelic objects issued between 1991 and 2014 by the Ministry of Information Technology and Communications of Republic of Moldova - postal stamps, booklets and laced sheets, envelopes, postcards, models and essays - stored in the collections of the National Museum of History of Moldova and the State enterprise „Poșta Moldovei".

In the multitude of topics addressed for 23 years, Moldovan philately promoted with honor cultural and historical values. Most representative philatelic objects are part of the exhibition framework. Turning point moments from our history, history and culture personalities, symbolic landmarks and monuments, heritage objects are among the aspects mirrored in the exhibition. Philatelic materials display: the Great National Assembly, election day of the first president of Republic of Moldova, 15 years from accession to UN, 70 years from the first mass deportation wave of Bessarabaians; fortresses of Soroca, Tighina (Bender), Orhei, Hotin, Cetatea Albă, Ismail and Chilia; monasteries of Căpriana, Curchi, Hârbovăț, Japca, Rudi, Saharna and Ţipova; rulers of Moldova such as Alexandru cel Bun, Ştefan cel Mare, Petru Rareș, Mihai Viteazul, Vasile Lupu, Dimitrie Cantemir etc.; eminent personalities such as G. Ureche, Dosoftei, Varlaam, M. Costin, N. Milescu, I. Creangă, M. Eminescu, A. Bernardazzi, M. Berezovschi, A. Mateevici, Pan Halipa, Ş. Ciobanu, G. Vieru, M. Bieșu etc.

Thus, philatelic materials displayed in the exhibition illustrate the true national values that should not be forgotten, as they are what characterize us, define us, and enrich us.

With this exhibition, the public is being offered a small part of the living inheritance of our past and the opportunity to admire the beauty of design, of colors and printing technique of philatelic pieces.