Museum Expositions

Highlight tour (45 min.).

The History of Belozersk Museum is composed of six halls with permanent exhibitions revealing the history of the Belozersk region from the Paleolithic are (Early Stone Age) to the 20th century and an exhibition hall. Running through the cultural and historical development of the Belozersk region, you will try to lit the fire, take part in archeological digs to find and get objects being several thousand years old, know how to tie knots, wear medieval suits of armour, shoot a bow. You will know about revolutionary events, collectivization, industrial and agricultural development as well as development of industrial facilities in the 20th century, get familiar with the history of educational and cultural establishments, activities of pioneer and young communist organizations. A separate topic is the development of shipping and fishing in White Lake, including the history and functions of the Mariinsk Canal System and the Volga-Baltic Waterway, Cherepovets Waterways and Shipping, Belozersk Port. The Military Glory Hall will tell you about participation of people of Belozersk in the Battle of Kulikovo, War of 1812, First World War, Great Patriotic War. The halls exhibit archeological finds of the Stone, Bronze, Early Iron Ages, findings from the source of the Sheksna River where the town of Beloozero was located up to the 14th centuries, furniture, interior items (19th – early 20th centuries), monetary notes (18th – early 20th centuries), belongings of town merchants and bourgeois, items and documents on the local history of the 20th century. Models of the Belozersk Kremlin (reconstructed fortress of the second part of the 15th century) and 17 town churches of the 16th – early 19th centuries will allow visitors to visualize monuments which have been disappeared or partly destroyed. The History of Belozersk Museum building hosts the Exhibition Department of the Belozersk Regional Museum of Local Lore. Here you may find temporary exhibitions and have practical activities in arts and crafts.

— Travelling with an Archeologist. This themed tour will allow visitors to have an interesting time journey from the Stone Age up to our time..

—  Shipping and Fishing in White Lake. During this tour you will know about waterways in Belozeriye, construction of the Mariinsk Canal System and the Volga-Baltic Waterway, species of fish in White Lake, how and when people fished.

— "The Belozersk Fortress" (the Belozersk Kremlin model). This narration reveals the history of the Belozersk fortress created when Ivan the Great reigned, its significance as a fortress, a place where representatives of the grand ducal family hid in case of hazard and where dukes, boyars, military leaders were exiled, and the history of Beloozero during the Time of Troubles..

— "The Stone Chronicles of Belozersk" (based on the models of the town churches). 17 churches were located in the town in the early 20th century. During this tour you will know the history of construction of these churches, specific features of the architecture of Belozersk churches, interesting facts on the history of Belozersk associated with these churches, and the destiny of the churches in Belozersk during the Soviet period.

In the Mirror of White Lake

The White Lake Museum invites everyone to get familiar with one of the largest water bodies in the Vologda region, plants and animals of Belozeriye. It is the second limnological museum in Russia (the first one is the Baikal Museum) which is among the unique regional museums. The museum exposition consists of the following sections: From the Depth of the Centuries, Forest and Its Inhabitants, White Lake, Sovereign Fish Yard, Minerals and Rocks, Physical and Geographical Characteristics of the Belozersk District. The interactive system allows visitors to visualize the particular features of the water regime in White Lake with the 3D model of the lake and a part of the basin in its center.

— From the Depth of the Centuries. During this tour visitors will see fossil samples starting from the Permian period (360 million years). The zoological collection includes materials on classifications and migrations of birds and a collection of insets.
— Forest and Its Inhabitants. The dedicated tour will allow visitors to get familiar with forest animals, including bears, wolves, wild boars, foxes, representatives of the marten family, including the biggest ones such as brocks and gluttons. 
— White Lake. White Lake is one of the largest lakes in the world! It may be seen on maps of almost any scale. The museum has an interactive complex called the Blue Pearl of the Russian North which allows visitors to imagine the significance and role of the lake in the life of town dwellers. 
— Sovereign Fish Yard. The main treasure of White Lake is its fish stock. Nowadays, 29 species of fish such as perch pike, whitebait, pike, bream and many others inhibit the lake. The most valuable fish in White Lake is perch pike. You will be able to find out the diversity of fish species and have a look at them as well.
— Minerals and Rocks. During this tour visitors will see exhibited (about 200 samples, including amethyst (Brazil), charoit (Urals), astrophyllite (Kola Peninsula) and others) samples of minerals and rocks of the world.
— Physical and Geographic Characteristics of the Belozersk District. Visitors will be able to imagine sounds of ancient seas, see temperature and landscape changes in different seasons, dig into the paleontological excavation and do many other things.

Russian Log House Tour

The museum invites you to immerse yourself in the Russian village of the late 19th – early 20th centuries. Here you will get to know the traditional way of life of our forefathers and the origin of culture and mentality of Russian people. The Russian log house (“izba”) interior exhibition includes original items used in peasants’ life such as handlooms, spinning wheels, cribs, irons, rushlight holders and others. Both adults and children take a keen interest in old-time Russia, i.e. its customs, ceremonies, traditions, legends and, of course, all associated items. Folk calendar and interactive programs such as A Wonderful Pike Lived in White Lake, Those Funny Bear Dances in Belozeriye, Viewing of the Bride on the Mother of God Day, Women at a Cabbage Party, Tea Making in Belozeriye, Hen Party, Wedding Party in Belozersk, Recruit Seeing Off Party and others as well as master classes for making fabric and needle dolls take place at the museum.

- "The life of a peasant family". On the tour, everyone will be able to feel a sense of belonging to the world of the Russian northern village of the late 19th - early 20th centuries. Here you will learn about the structure and decoration of a peasant hut, household and household utensils used by ancestors, household items. In the museum, everything "speaks" about the traditions, customs, rituals, holidays that existed on the Belozersk land. Those who wish will be able to try on traditional costumes and feel like a "big man" (host) and a "big woman" (hostess).
- "Maiden's room". The excursions will reveal the issues of moral education of the younger generation, getting used to farming and how, in general, girls were brought up and what they were taught in the period of the 19th - early 20th centuries. Hardly everyone knows which girl was called a "slut" and which guy was called a "drolechka"? Here they will tell you how traditional youth conversations and gatherings took place, how they had fun, what games the girls and boys played. Anyone will be able to participate in these amusements. In addition, the exhibition presents old, unusually beautiful towels and towels made by local needlewomen, which are stored in the funds of the Belozersky Regional Museum of Local Lore. These household items had their own special purpose and played an important role, as the exhibition "And everything native will come to life on that towel" will tell. Those who wish can try themselves as spinners and weavers, as well as perform a stitch on a sewing machine.
- "And everything native will come to life on that towel." The exhibition shows a variety of towels stored in the stock collection of the Belozersky Regional Museum of Local Lore. All the works were made by the craftsmen of the Belozersky region during the late 19th - early 20th centuries by hand, and therefore each of the exhibits is unique: decorated with embroidery or hand weaving. In these masterpieces of folk art, you can see various patterns that have their own special sacred meaning.
In total, about 30 exhibits are presented at the exhibition. 
A towel is a deeply symbolic, multi-valued product. In the old days, a towel is an attribute of all folk holidays and rituals, a kind of symbolic letter.
The exhibition introduces the types of towels, the ways of decorating them and the rituals in which it was used. For example, few people know that an old towel had a length of three to five meters and was used not for wiping hands, but for decorating a home.
It is known that an embroidered towel carries a lot of meanings and has a ritual and ceremonial meaning. Wedding, maternity and other towels decorated with various types of antique embroidery, such as painting, vestibule, fillet perevit, amaze with their beauty, technique and complexity of execution. Looking at these antique towels and mysterious embroidered patterns, you realize how much work and soul is invested in them.

Sightseeing tour of the exposition