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#Exhibit of the Month

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German porcelain is highly prized among antique collectors for its exceptional material quality, originality, and the meticulous craftsmanship of its decorative design.
The museum's collection preserves five figurines from one of the oldest porcelain manufactories in the Thuringia region of Germany - the statuary group known as *"The Musicians"*, crafted at the Volkstedt manufactory. These pieces entered the museum's holdings in 1991, acquired from a resident of Chișinău. With undeniable historical and artistic value, they bear the distinct imprint of the Rococo style.
The Volkstedt manufactory has a long-standing tradition in producing figurines, including those depicting musicians. In 1760, Georg Heinrich Macheleid - inventor of hard-paste porcelain in Thuringia - founded a production workshop in Zitzendorf, which was relocated to Volkstedt in 1762. Macheleid led the manufactory until 1764. Over time, the factory changed ownership and management multiple times. Under the direction of Christian Nonne, it flourished between 1767 and 1797, a period marked by significant artistic development. Volkstedt began creating figurines that would later gain international recognition.
It was during this flourishing period that the museum's porcelain statuettes, titled *"The Musicians"*, were produced. They depict five “putti”: four playing musical instruments (flute, mandolin, horn, and pipe), while the fifth conducts. Each figurine is entirely handcrafted - from modeling to painting - and delicately adorned with pastel tones and gilded details, capturing the playful movement and refined artistry of each musician. The base is made of mass-colored porcelain in a rare grey-green hue. The contrast between green, white, and gold accents lends the ensemble an unusually delicate appearance. These ornamental features are characteristic of the Rococo style, which emerged in France and is closely associated with the reign of King Louis XV.
The mark applied to the figurines consists of two crossed forks, clearly rendered in underglaze blue, with slightly blurred paint - a detail that helps date their production. Because the crossed forks often resembled the crossed swords of the Meissen trademark, the Volkstedt manufactory was compelled to change its mark starting in 1787. Initially represented by a single fork, the mark briefly returned to two forks before being replaced in 1800 by the graphic symbol "R", referencing the town of Rudolstadt. Therefore, the brief period during which the two-fork mark was reinstated - and during which the museum's figurines were likely produced - is estimated to be between 1787 and 1800.

The statuettes range in height from 10 to 18 cm and are preserved in relatively good condition.

These late 18th-century German porcelain pieces, now on display, are exceptionally rare. They stand as true works of art by German craftsmen and serve as important historical testimonies to the evolution of porcelain manufacturing in Germany.

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#Exhibit of the Month

May 2023

The rocking bowl from Grigoreuca

It is fascinating how over thousands of years, clay objects have not lost their charm and have adapted to each era, evolving with society. Such a modest material as clay, could be used in a variety of ways, among which the most ancient - the modeling of vessels. The multitude of shapes and decoration of ceramic vessels fascinates and represents a true art adjusted to the way of life and the spiritual level of communities from different historical periods. A separate category is represented by miniature vessels. They can represent from miniatures of kitchen utensils (pots, cups, glasses) to zoomorphic, anthropomorphic representations, models of chariots.

Such a vessel was discovered in 1989, during the research of a burial mound located on the territory of Grigoreuca village, Sîngerei district (excavation authors: E. Antipenco, V. Beilecci). It was deposited as a funerary inventory in a tomb attributed to the Jamnaja culture (early Bronze Age period, XXIII-XVIII centuries BC). The vessel is hand-shaped from clay paste mixed with crushed ceramic. It is rectangular in shape with rounded corners and trapezoidal in section, straight base and slightly raised walls. The mouth of the vessel is wide, with a straight lip, weakly highlighted. Below the lip is provided with 12 conical protuberances located three on each of the sides. Those on the long sides are provided with a longitudinal circular hole. The outer surface of the bowl, including its base, is decorated with string printing. The decoration is made in the form of radiating lines and overlapping triangles. It is yellowish-grey in color with brown spots on the outside and gray-brown on the inside.

Although it was discovered in a tomb attributed to the Jamnaja culture, at the moment, no other objects of this kind are known in the environment of this culture. The closest analogues are known in the dwellings and funerary complexes of the Catacombs culture that existed in the middle period of the Bronze Age, the XIX-XVIII centuries BC, in the North-Pontic steppes. Such pieces are also known in the environment of the North Caucasian culture (XX-XXIII centuries BC). Most likely, the vessel discovered at Grigoreuca represents an import object from the Catacomb culture environment.

Both the shape of the vessel and the side holes, which assume its suspension, allowed its interpretation to be the model of a swing, hence the name swing vessel. But according to other opinions such objects are chariot models. The presence of visible traces of burning (soot) inside some of them, does not exclude their use as an opiate or smoker.

Dimensions: H - 4.9 cm; L - 13.6 cm; W - 8.3 cm.




 

 


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#Exhibit of the Month

German porcelain is highly prized among antique collectors for its exceptional material quality, originality, and the meticulous craftsmanship of its decorative design...

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The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
©2006-2025 National Museum of History of Moldova
Visit museum 31 August 1989 St., 121 A, MD 2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
Phones:
Secretariat: +373 (22) 24-43-25
Department of Public Relations and Museum Education: +373 (22) 24-04-26
Fax: +373 (22) 24-43-69
E-mail: office@nationalmuseum.md
Technical Support: info@nationalmuseum.md
Web site administration and maintenance: Andrei EMILCIUC

 



The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
©2006-2025 National Museum of History of Moldova
Visit museum 31 August 1989 St., 121 A, MD 2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
Phones:
Secretariat: +373 (22) 24-43-25
Department of Public Relations and Museum Education: +373 (22) 24-04-26
Fax: +373 (22) 24-43-69
E-mail: office@nationalmuseum.md
Technical Support: info@nationalmuseum.md
Web site administration and maintenance: Andrei EMILCIUC

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The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
©2006-2025 National Museum of History of Moldova
Visit museum 31 August 1989 St., 121 A, MD 2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
Phones:
Secretariat: +373 (22) 24-43-25
Department of Public Relations and Museum Education: +373 (22) 24-04-26
Fax: +373 (22) 24-43-69
E-mail: office@nationalmuseum.md
Technical Support: info@nationalmuseum.md
Web site administration and maintenance: Andrei EMILCIUC