#Exhibit of the Month

The Roman bronze situla comes from a collection of archaeological artifacts confiscated at customs and transferred to the holdings of the National Museum of History of Moldova in 2009. Its place of discovery remains unknown.

A situla (Latin for "bucket") is a metal vessel-usually made of bronze-shaped like a pail and equipped with two movable handles at the top, traditionally used for mixing wine with water. The handles are attached to the vessel via two decorated ears that are welded to the rim.

The body of the situla is truncated-conical in shape and features two decorative bands with small circular patterns formed by hammering, located just below the rim.

Its base is double-layered: the inner bottom is hemispherical and hammered, while the outer bottom is flat and lathe-made. The outer base is welded to the inner bottom, serving as the vessel's foot-support.

This object was crafted using a combination of casting, hammering, and partial lathe-finishing. Dimensions: Maximum height - 31.7 cm; Maximum diameter - 22.8 cm; Base diameter - 13.5 cm

Situlae of this type originated in the Roman Empire and were later adopted by various ancient peoples, including those from the northwestern Pontic region.

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Events Archive

Book launch „The Ghetto of Chișinău, 1941-1942” by Paul A. Shapiro

February 9, 2017

On February 9, starting at 15.00, the National Museum of History of Moldova hosted a book launch event of the Romanian edition of "The ghetto of Chisinau. 1941-1942" by Paul A. Shapiro, director of International Affairs and director emeritus of the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies "Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel" at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, D.C.

The presentation and discussions were held in the Blue Room of the museum, in the presence of Culture Minister Monica Babuc; Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Lilian Darii; US Ambassador to Moldova, James Pettit; Director General of the National Institute for Studying the Holocaust in Romania "Elie Wiesel", Alexandru Florian; book author Paul A. Shapiro. The launch event, moderated by the Director General of the museum, dr. hab. Eugen Sava, was attended by MPs, historians, museum curators, writers and journalists.

American researcher Paul Shapiro made a detailed presentation of his book, published in 2016 in Bucharest at Curtea Veche Publishing, number of pages: 304. He spoke about the historical context of anti-Semitism in Eastern Europe and the Holocaust drama lived between 1941 and 1942 by approximately 11,000 Jews crammed into a ghetto in the center of Chișinău. The presentation included the ghetto map, disturbing images and documents regarding the tragic fate of Jews in Chișinău.

The event was organized by the Ministry of Culture in partnership with the US Embassy in Moldova, the National Institute for Studying the Holocaust in Romania "Elie Wiesel" and the National Museum of History of Moldova.

#Exhibit of the Month

Roman Bronze Situla (1st century BC – 2nd century AD)

Book launch „The Ghetto of Chișinău, 1941-1942” by Paul A. Shapiro

February 9, 2017

#Exhibit of the Month