Following nearly two hundred years of collecting artefacts, that have been produced and used on Slovenian soil since the 14
th century and are characteristic and important for Slovenia and the Slovenian people, the permanent exhibition of the selected collections is open to the public at the new venue of the
National museum of Slovenia – Metelkova.
The first floor galleries showcase the evolution of seating and case furniture in Slovenia combined with the lighting and clocks collections; drinking vessels and other artefacts made of glass, ceramics and porcelaine; devotional objects; as well as the bequest of the eminent Slovenian fencer Rudolf Cvetko. On the second floor are the study collections of antique arms and armour, metalwork, ecclesiastical textiles, toys, the bequest of the athlete Boris Gregorka, as well as the painting collection and select musical instruments. On view are more than 2500 artefacts, periodically freshened up by others from the storage.
A stroll through the galleries offers countlesss attractions. Authentic historical exhibits speak of the ways of life and work in Slovenia in the past five centuries, they are evidence of the creativity, talents and skills of our ancestors, as an inspiration for the coming generations. Many are linked to eminent Slovenian men and women, as well as the cities, villages and castles across the country. Visitors can savour the extraordinary diversity of types, shapes and ornaments, materials, techniques and workmanship, as were constantly reinvented through the Slovenian cultural history, beginning with the gothic, renaissance, baroque, rococo and neo-classicism to empire, biedermeier, historism, secession, art deco, to modernism.