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Earth and People Museum in Sofia turns 25



25 years ago, a new museum opened doors in Sofia – the National Museum of Earth and People. Over a year and a half, geologists, mineral collectors and mining companies in Bulgaria were making donations to fill the funds of the new museum. Its main exposition consists of a group of gigantic crystals donated by Ilia Delev – a Bulgarian emigrant to Brazil. Today, this collection, which is one of the seven standing exhibitions of the museum, includes not only minerals from Brazil but also mountain crystals weighing more than one tonne from Bulgaria and Latin America. The idea for opening a specialized museum of non living nature belongs to associate professor Michail Maleev – mineralogist and director of the museum since its foundation to this day. He organized the fund-raising campaigns and has donated his own collection of rare minerals from around the world. So, on June 19, 1987, the Earth and People Museum welcomed its first visitors.



Zhivka Yanakieva, main curator of the museum, told Radio Bulgaria more:
“When it opened doors, the museum owned some 6 to 7 thousand mineral exhibits. Their number today has reached 27 thousand, with less than 5 percent being displayed in our standing exhibitions. Our collections are being constantly renewed and enriched. Each year, we fill our funds with interesting and unique exhibits via donations, exchange and others. The most interesting items are immediately put on public display. Each year we also stage a temporary exhibition of all new items”, Zhivka Yanakieva explains.

The Sofia-based Museum of Earth and People has a team of specialists who work in the Rhodope Mountain. As Zhivka Yanakieva says, Bulgaria is a country very rich in decorative stones, agates in particular, so one the main tasks of the museum is to display these beautiful creations of nature in the best possible way.



The second floor of the museum showcases ellipse-shaped agates revealing a variety of natural colours and patterns. They are part of an exhibition entitled Precious and Decorative stones which draws the largest number of visitors.



The National Earth and People Museum ranks fifth in Europe in terms of the rich variety of minerals displayed. One of its standing exhibitions is entitled the Earth’s Minerals. The Museum, however, is also a laboratory where scientific research in mineralogy is carried out. Main curator Zhivka Yanakieva again:
“In 1987, speleologists arrived and told us that near Karlukovo in Northern Bulgaria, a karst cave was found with exceptionally beautiful formations. A group of specialists from the museum was sent there to collect exhibits. Some of these cave formations, known in speleology as speleothems, are unique. I am working exactly in this direction. I asked for advice from leading world experts and they support my theory that these are formations unseen so far”.



The National Museum of Earth and People is an elegant venue for holding international competitions, photographic exhibitions and festivals. It also offers educational programs, organizes round-table discussions and scientific meetings. By the end of February this year, young children can enjoy an exhibition of life-size models of dinosaurs. From 17 to 21 April, the museum will host the 19th International Competition Music and Earth for instrumentalists and composers from various countries, dedicated to World Earth Day.



To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the museum, it will organize its traditional Donator Day on June 19. All new exhibits will be displayed in a special exposition and donators will be given honorary certificates.