The permanent history exhibit here demonstrates how the city has spread from its starting point at the Kremlin. It is heavy on artefacts from the 13th and 14th centuries, especially household items and weapons, although there is little information in English. More exciting, the museum has space to launch thought-provoking temporary exhibits, including artists' and other locals' perspectives on the city.

The museum is housed in the former warehouses and garages of the Defence Ministry, with a central courtyard that displays outdoor art and interactive exhibits.

Transportation

  • metro: Park Kultury

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Church of St Nicholas in Khamovniki

0.3 MILES

This church, commissioned by the weavers’ guild in 1676, is among the most colourful in Moscow. The ornate green-and-orange-tapestry exterior houses an…

2. Russian Academy of Arts

0.32 MILES

The Russian Academy of Arts hosts rotating exhibits in the historic 19th-century mansion of the Morozov estate. Despite the institutional-sounding name,…

3. Tolstoy Estate-Museum

0.33 MILES

Leo Tolstoy’s winter home during the 1880s and 1890s now houses an interesting museum dedicated to the writer’s home life. While it’s not particularly…

4. Tsereteli Gallery

0.35 MILES

Housed in the 18th-century Dolgoruky mansion is this endeavour of the tireless Moscow architect and artist Zurab Tsereteli. The gallery shows how prolific…

5. Multimedia Art Museum

0.42 MILES

This slick, modern gallery is home to an impressive photographic library and archives of contemporary and historic photography. The facility usually hosts…

6. Gorky Park Museum

0.46 MILES

The grandiose colonnaded arch that serves as Gorky Park's front entrance now contains a museum, its exhibition largely comprised of old photographs and…

7. Tolstoy Literary Museum

0.47 MILES

The Tolstoy Literary Museum is supposedly the oldest literary memorial museum in the world (founded in 1911). In addition to its impressive reference…

8. Central House of Artists (TsDKh)

0.47 MILES

Sometimes called by its initials, this huge building attached to the New Tretyakov Gallery contains studios and galleries, as well as exhibition space for…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "russia/moscow/arbat-khamovniki/attractions/moscow-museum/a/poi-sig/373755/1336046",
      "position": "superzone"
    }