#Exhibit of the Month

This clay vessel was discovered in 1982 by archaeologist V. Sorochin during excavations of a burial mound (no. 1) located in the village of Speia, Dubăsari District. It originates from grave no. 5 and is dated to the 4th millennium BC, belonging to the Usatovo culture.
The vessel was found in a child's grave. The burial pit had an oval shape, and the deceased was laid in a crouched position (similar to the fetal posture), on the left side. A total of five vessels were uncovered in this grave: three near the back, one at the feet, and one in the pelvic area.
The cultural attribution of this funerary complex was determined based on the burial rite and grave goods. This culture is characterized by the specific construction of the burial pit, as well as the positioning and orientation of the deceased toward the east and northeast.

The vessel is shaped from clay mixed with finely crushed shell. Its walls curve gradually toward the top, with the widest diameter at the shoulder area. It has a short neck, a slightly flared rim, and a flat base. The surface is carefully polished, in some areas to a lustrous finish. The interior is reddish-brown, while the exterior is yellowish-brown with gray spots. The rim features groups of perforations, three of which are preserved in their original state. The diameter of the holes is 0.35 cm. The space between the groups of perforations is decorated with cord impressions. The transition from the neck to the shoulder is adorned with three horizontal lines made with cord, from which, in five places, three vertical lines descend, each 5 cm long, executed using the same technique. At the time of discovery, these lines were filled with a white paste. The space between the groups of lines is decorated at the top with short vertical lines (0.5 cm long), and in the center with a meander ornament made of two parallel lines impressed with cord. The base of the vessel retains the imprint of a textile.
Vessel dimensions: Height: 22 cm; Rim diameter: 15.7 cm; Maximum diameter: 22 cm; Base diameter: 10 cm.

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Exhibitions

“Sybir – prison of nations”

August 29 – October 20, 2025

The exhibition "Sybir - prison of nations" presents a history in which each of us or our loved ones can find ourselves, including our parents and grandparents. It tells about the history of the Second World War. However, it does not focus on military operations and, certainly, they are not the main subject. Instead, photo-documentary testimonies of people under Soviet occupation during the Second World War are presented to the larger public.

The exhibition describes the drama of the lives of Polish citizens, from the invasion of Poland by the Soviet Union on September 17, 1939, through mass deportations, imprisonment and labor camps, to the chance to leave the Soviet Union - first with the Army of General Anders, then with the units led by Zygmunt Berling and, finally, during the return home after the end of the war. Part of the common history of Central and Eastern Europe, following the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, the history and memory of the inhabitants of Bessarabia after the establishment of the Soviet occupation in the region is presented.

The exhibition approach reveals the drama of Stalinist deportations, forced labor, harsh cold, difficult living conditions and lack of rights of those who went through the Gulag. At the same time, the exhibition message brings to the attention of visitors the fact that in the midst of this atrocious existence, the hope of reuniting with loved ones, homesickness and Christian faith remained for many of the deportees the only sources of resistance and survival. For years, their memories were overlooked, and today they are "an open book about our common past".

The sources of the photographs and oral history testimonies come from the collection of the Sybir Memorial Museum, the collection of the National Museum of History of Moldova, Tomasz Kizny's album GULAG, the public domain.

The exhibition is the result of cooperation between the Sybir Memorial Museum (Muzeum Pamięci Sybiru) in Bialystok, the National Museum of History of Moldova and the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in the Republic of Moldova.

The exhibition will be open to the public until October 20, 2025.