Ярославский музей‑заповедник

About museum

The Yaroslavl Museum-Preserve is the largest museum of the Yaroslavl region. It boasts one of the richest and culturally significant collections among the Russian regional museums. The museum is visited by about a million people annually. In 2020, The Yaroslavl Museum-Preserve is celebrating its 155-year anniversary.

The Yaroslavl Museum-Preserve buildings are a collection of the 16th and 17th century masterpieces of the Old Russian architecture. The main exhibits are on display in the ensemble of the former Transfiguration of Our Saviour Monastery dating back to the 16th – 19th centuries

The bell tower is the highest construction on the territory of the museum. It is the only panoramic observation deck in the city giving a spectacular view of the historical part of Yaroslavl. The bell tower also houses 18 ancient bells. There are five more 17th century churches of the Yaroslavl architectural school that are part of the Museum-Preserve.

In 2005, the ensemble of the Transfiguration of Our Saviour Monastery and Church, situated in the historical city centre, were listed as part of the UNESCO World Heritage sites. More than 1 000 000 visitors come to the museum every year to marvel at these architectural gems.

The Yaroslavl Museum-Preserve has a rich collection of more than 350 000 items reflecting all the facets of the historical, cultural and natural heritage of the Yaroslavl region.

The first edition of “The Lay of Igor’s Campaign” is of particular value on exposition "“The Lay of Igor’s Campaign”". The book was published in 1800 in Moscow and has preserved the text of an ancient poem for posterity. This exhibition is the only one in Russia dedicated to this unique literary monument.
The exposition is housed in the interiors of the 16th century - the refectory and the abbot chamber. According to the discoverer of the “The Lay of Igor’s Campaign” A. I. Musin-Pushkin, it was here, in the Transfiguration Monastery, that an ancient collection with a poem was acquired at the end of the 18th century. Icons and manuscript books immerse into the spiritual world of medieval Russia. Archeology items are adjacent to impressive reconstructions of ancient weapons.
Documentary evidence opens the veil of secrecy over the mysterious story of the discovery and death of the manuscript of “The Lay of Igor’s Campaign”

The exhibition "The Lay of Igor’s Campaign"

Wednesday – Sunday: 10.30 a.m. – 5.45 p.m.
Days off - Monday, Tuesday.
Every first Wednesday of the month - sanitary day, the exhibition is closed.

A significant part of the museum collection is devoted to the items that were once found in monastery and church sacristies, libraries and Yaroslavl cathedrals. The most outstanding pieces of the 13th – beginning of the 20th century Orthodox art are part of the exhibition “The Treasures of Yaroslavl”. These include the pieces by Russian goldsmiths and silversmiths, pieces of goldworkand ornamental embroidery studded with jewels and pearls, Eastern, Western-European and Russian painted fabrics and painted enamel by masters from Moscow, Yaroslavl and Rostov. Such articles, dating back to the days of the first Tsars of the Romanov dynasty, have been admired by visitors of large international exhibitions in Paris, Brussels, Zagreb, New York, Washington, Tokyo and Seoul.

The exhibition “The Treasures of Yaroslavl”

Monday: 10.30 a.m. – 5.45 p.m.
Wednesday – Sunday: 10.30 a.m. – 5.45 p.m.
Day off - Tuesday.
Every first Wednesday of the month - sanitary day, the exhibition is closed.

Magnificent pieces of Russian iconography, mostly by the Yaroslavl masters, are on display at the permanent exhibition “The Icons of Yaroslavl”.

The exhibition “The Icons of Yaroslavl”.

The exhibition is temporarily closed.

The exhibition "History of the Yaroslavl region" introduces the materials of archaeological research that prove the foundation of Yaroslavl in the first half of the 11th century. It tells the story of Yaroslavl's heyday. There is also a large collection of armory and clothing on display.

The exhibition "History of the Yaroslavl region".

Tuesday – Sunday: 10.30 a.m. – 5.45 p.m.
Days off – Monday.
Every first Wednesday of the month - sanitary day, the exhibition is closed.

The Museum-Preserve has a number of branches. One of them is the Memorial House Museum of Leonid Sobinov, a famous Russian tenor. The basis of the collection are personal items of the singer, genuine documents and photographs.

The Museum-Preserve

The museum is temporarily closed.

One of the villages in the Yaroslavl region is home to one more branch of the museum – “Space” museum. It is devoted to the first female cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova.

“Space” museum.

Wednesday – Sunday: 9.30 a.m. – 4.30 p.m.
Days off - Monday, Tuesday.
Every first Wednesday of the month - sanitary day, the museum is closed.

The branch of the Museum-Preserve “The Museum of Military Glory” is the only Yaroslavl museum dedicated to the Second World War. It has numerous genuine war artefacts: documents, photos, military decorations and arms.

The Museum of Military Glory.

Wednesday – Sunday: 10.30 a.m. – 5.45 p.m.
Days off - Monday, Tuesday.
Every first Wednesday of the month - sanitary day, the museum is closed.

Brilliant and varied museum collections, high involvement in the tourism sector, active scientific and educational work done by the museum specialists make the Yaroslavl Museum-Preserve a trusty keeper of the historical memory of the Russian people and a significant participant in the cultural life of the country.