#Exhibit of the Month

Buckles (paftale) are an almost indispensable element of traditional women's dress in the Southeastern European area, particularly in the Balkans, and have been in use over a long period, from the 14th to the 20th century.
The word pafta is of Turkic origin-possibly entering the language via Iranian influence-derived from the Persian word bafta, meaning "woven," which evolved in Turkish to signify "plate." Today, the term is used in nearly identical forms in Romanian (pafta), Bulgarian (пафта), Serbian (пафте), and some Aromanian dialects (pafta), designating functional and ornamental clothing accessories used to fasten belts, girdles, or sashes, crafted from various materials and decorated using different techniques.
The three buckles decorated in the polychrome enamel technique, preserved in the collection of the National Museum of History of Moldova, belong to the South-Danubian tradition and are dated to the late 19th - early 20th century.

Each buckle consists of two identical trapezoidal parts, their surfaces divided into three roughly equal registers, adorned with stylized vegetal motifs forming a metal lattice into which enamel is poured. The two parts extend into sharp angles at the ends, forming a triangle with the edge of the last decorative register, similarly ornamented. The enamel used to fill the floral motifs is black, turquoise, white, orange, green, yellow, and burgundy. The entire decorative field is framed by a beaded border.

On the reverse, both components retain a copper band riveted along the edge, used to fasten the ends of the belt. The fastening system, made by interlocking the hinges of the two parts and secured with a movable pin attached by a chain to a clasp fixed on one of the buckle pieces, is concealed by a rectangular plate (riveted with three pins to the body of the piece), with narrow edges ending in sharp angles, decorated in the same style and technique. Additionally, it features three circular settings with notched edges bent inward to hold centrally placed red and green glass paste. These settings are framed by a radiant, notched band.

The symbolism of the color palette encodes meanings and symbols, chosen for their believed magical powers. Red has always represented love, affection, and protection against curses and the evil eye; white symbolizes purity and spiritual and physical cleanliness; blue is symbolically associated with infinity, morning, new beginnings, and transformation; green represents destiny, hope, prosperity, balance, and rebirth, being linked to nature's revival each spring and to life itself.

Virtual Tour

Branch Museums

Lazo Mansion Museum in the Piatra village (Orhei District)

The Lazo family mansion is located in the village of Piatra, Orhei district. It is registered as a monument of architecture and history from the second half of the nineteenth century, with national significance, protected by the state.

Starting with 1990, by Order of the Ministry of Culture no. 220 from August 1, the mansion is transferred to the administration of the National Museum of History of Moldova, with the status of branch.

The mansion was built between 1862-1865 by Ioan and Matilda Lazo, representatives of a noble family of Bessarabia. Two generations of the Lazo family spent part of their lives in this house. In 1894 Gheorghe and Elena Lazo sold the Piatra mansion. Until 1940, the Lazo family house passed through the hands of several owners. After 1945, the house is nationalized and used as a school. In 1974, the rebuilt mansion became a memorial museum devoted to the civil war hero in Russia, Serghei Lazo. In 1993 the museum was reorganized into the Lazo family mansion. Between 2007 and 2018, the mansion underwent an extensive rehabilitation process, opening its doors to the public on December 2, 2018.

The new exhibition in the Lazo family mansion "Bessarabian Environment - the Piatra mansion - interconnection of historical personalities", includes a living room, a dining room, a library office and a children's room. The memorial and typological pieces from the new exhibition present the material and moral ambience of the Lazo Family Mansion with several generations of this noble family, with their epoch, with all the complexities of life, emotions and facts intertwined with the history of the personalities owners of the Mansion, of living people with their visions and occupations who have been in our history and have contributed to the development of the Basarabian society over the centuries.

Visiting hours:
Monday - Sunday: 10.00-17.00

Friday closed

Official Holidays - January 1, 7 and 8, March 8, the first and second day of Easter, Parents Day, May 1 and 9, August 27 and 31, December 25 - the museum is closed.

Admission Fees

Adults - 50 MDL
Pensioners, Students - 20 MDL
School students - 10 MDL

Free admission:

Preschool children (up to the age of 7), children from residential institutions, children with disabilities (up to the age of 18) and their companion, military personnel, official delegations and delegations of a cultural nature (within the limits of the museum's operating hours), employees of the national museum network, the Ministry of Culture and national institutions in the field of cultural heritage, holders of ICOM and ICOMOS cards, war veterans (pursuant to Law no. 317/2024), for the participants in the liquidation of the consequences of the damage at the Chernobyl C.A.E.

Free admission for all visitors: the last Thursday of every month

Costs of guided tours:

For a group of 5 - 30 people:

Adults - 150 MDL
Pupils, Students, Pensioners - 100 MDL

Guided tours are free for children from residential institutions and military conscripts