#Exhibit of the Month

The Chișinău Diocesan Girls' School opened its doors on May 3, 1864, addressing a pressing need: in Bessarabia there were no institutions dedicated to the education of clergy's daughters. According to the 1864 circular, teaching was conducted in the Romanian language, a provision applied throughout the diocese. The school's first headmistress was noblewoman Anastasia Dmitrievna Rizo, invited by Archbishop Antonie.
The curriculum, approved by the Ministry of Public Education and the Chișinău Diocese, combined theoretical subjects with practical training. Students studied religion, reading and writing in Romanian, Slavonic, and Russian, arithmetic and mental calculation, world history and geography. The program was complemented by church singing and practical skills such as sewing, embroidery, knitting, as well as household management - baking bread and prosphora, preparing meals and preserves, caring for livestock, and cultivating gardens.
The vignette, created in 1911 at the photographic studio of Z. N. Sumovski in Chișinău, depicts 29 graduates and 13 teachers. At the center are portraits of Bishop Serafim (Ciciagov), headmistress N. R. Mihelson, teacher V. E. Bejerian, and priests F. Ghiliarov and P. Jurikas. A notable figure is Praskovia Vasilievna Cuciurenko, a calligraphy teacher for 37 years, who in 1911 became senior educator and assistant headmistress. For her dedication, she was awarded the gold medal "For Long Service."
By 1911, the school had 648 students across 17 classes. Its library contained 7,414 volumes, including 3,955 for students and 3,459 for teachers. Graduates, often becoming priests' wives or teachers in rural and urban schools, contributed to spreading faith and moral education, strengthening the cultural and spiritual role of the institution.
On the reverse of the vignette is a label reading: "Store and workshop for frames, paintings, mirrors, and window glass, A. D. Kon'gova, Chișinău, Gogol Street no. 37, next to the State Bank."
This unique vignette was donated at the end of 2025 to the National Museum of History of Moldova by the Dadiștian family from Drochia.

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The official visit of the General Director of Herend Porcelain Manufacture, Hungary

May 26, 2016

On 26 May 2016, the National Museum of History of Moldova hosted the official visit of Dr. Attila Simon, General Director of Herend Porcelain Manufacture of Hungary. The event was marked by the opening of the exhibition of porcelain "Shining Herend" at National Museum of History of Moldova and presentation of the catalog of unique porcelain objects produced by this manufacture.

The exhibition opened for the first time in Chișinău is one of the largest outside Hungary. It is a celebration of 190 years since foundation of the famous Herend Manufacture. The vast collection brought to the National Museum of History of Moldova of more than 600 pieces from the 19th and 20th centuries provides an overview of the suggestive techniques and technologies specific to the Herend porcelain art process. From classic to modern. From decorative product to utility product. Catalogue "Herend Manufacture at the beginning of the new millennium" is published in outstanding graphical conditions and shows the most representative iconic porcelain creations by Herend, objects that are part of the Hungarian and European cultural heritage.

The visit, organized with the support of the Hungarian Embassy in Moldova, aimed at presenting and promoting the European cultural heritage. The meeting was attended by many officials, including Minister of Culture Monica Babuc, Minister of Education Corina Fusu, parliamentarians Valeriu Ghilețchi and Ina Șupac, Hungarian Ambassador Mátyás Szilágyi, Polish Ambassador Artur Michalski, other representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Chișinău, along with businessmen, artists and representatives of civil society.