The Lviv Museum of the History of Religion announces the launch of an ambitious project to create an online platform and digitize its stock collections. This initiative is a necessary step in preserving and popularizing the rich religious heritage of Ukraine.
“In peacetime, our museum exhibited about 10 percent of the stock collection. Some of the items that were not on permanent display were presented at exhibitions, published in museum catalogs and scholarly publications, but these publications are known only to a small group of specialists. Much of the collection has never been available to visitors. And since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the museum’s artifacts have been safely hidden and there is no way to see them. Thanks to the digital archive, everyone will be able to freely explore unique artifacts that tell about various aspects of religious culture,” says Nadia Polianska, project coordinator.
The project envisages the creation and presentation of an online platform where photos and information about 1200 of the most interesting museum objects will be published in Ukrainian and English, and the creation of 3D models of twenty-two archaeological sites from the stock collection, which will promote interest in and popularization of Ukrainian cultural heritage and expand the museum’s audience.
“Our museum is unique in the context of preserving and popularizing the sacred heritage and is dedicated to all world religions, building its work on the basis of freedom of speech and religion, religious tolerance. High-quality 3D models and detailed photographs will allow you to view the exhibits from all sides, as if they were right in front of you,” adds Nadiia Polianska.
The project “Creation and Popularization of a Digital Archive of the Stock Collections of the Lviv Museum of the History of Religion” is being implemented with the financial support of the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation, and the results of the project will be presented in October 2024.
For reference: The Lviv Museum of the History of Religion is the only one of its kind in Ukraine and one of the few in the world. It houses unique memorabilia that help to highlight the worldview foundations of world religions, the history and activities of church organizations traditional to our land.
The museum’s exposition is located in an architectural monument of national importance – a former Dominican monastery in Lviv, built in the XIV-XVIII centuries. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, visitors could see exhibitions dedicated to the religions of the Ancient World, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism. Now visitors can see temporary exhibitions and visit the mysterious dungeons of the former Dominican monastery. Organ and classical music concerts, sightseeing and thematic excursions, quests, and master classes are regularly held. There is a separate exhibition “Those Who Saved the World” at 36 Staroyevreiska Street, dedicated to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church’s rescue of Jews during World War II. The museum has five branches: Chervonohrad branch, located in the monument of national importance – Potocki Palace in Chervonohrad; Sokal branch “Man. Earth. Universe”; Museum-estate of the Antonych family in the village of Bortiatyn; Museum “Staroskvaryava Iconostasis of the XVI-XVIII centuries” in the village of Stara Skvaryava.