National Museum in Krakow

The National Museum in Krakow, founded in 1879, is the oldest and largest national museum in Poland. Its collection includes over 800,000 objects, featuring Polish and European painting, sculpture, decorative arts, militaria, ancient art, and Asian art. The Main Building on 3 Maja Avenue houses major permanent galleries such as 20th‑century Polish Art, Decorative Arts, and Arms & Uniforms. The museum operates numerous branches across Kraków, including the Cloth Hall Gallery of 19th‑Century Polish Art, the Bishop Erazm Ciołek Palace, the Jan Matejko House, and the Czartoryski Museum — home to masterpieces like Leonardo da Vinci’s Lady with an Ermine and Rembrandt’s Landscape with the Good Samaritan. As one of Poland’s most significant cultural institutions, the museum hosts major temporary exhibitions and offers extensive educational and research programs.