ABOUT THE MUSEUM
History, chronology, and photo gallery of the Local History Museum of the city of Horishni Plavni
Our history
The chronicle of the museum began in 1967, when in a young city on the Dnipro there arose a need to document and preserve every step of its rapid development. What started as a small public initiative by enthusiasts has, over the decades, transformed into a major research institution that today unites two powerful venues: the main building and a separate Exhibition Hall. Throughout its journey, the museum has remained the principal guardian of the region’s memory, combining the history of pioneering builders with the millennia-old heritage of the ancient cultures of this land. Today, the museum’s collections constitute a vast assemblage of over 44,000 unique items. Our collection spans an immense period of time: from paleontological finds from the age of mammoths to archaeological treasures of the Scythian era and Cossack relics. Each exhibit—from a ceramic shard found in a burial mound to the earliest documents on the establishment of the mining complex—is a piece of the great puzzle of our identity. This rich archive is not only a source of pride for Horishni Plavni, but also a valuable part of the Museum Fund of Ukraine, revealing to the world the richness of the culture of the Lower Dnipro region.
Chronology
Key stages of the museum’s development
Public museum
By decision of the city council, a museum was established on a voluntary basis, dedicated to the history of the city’s construction and the Dnipro Mining and Processing Plant.
Official status
The institution was granted the status of a state museum. The formation of research collections and the systematization of archaeological finds were initiated.
Active development of the archaeological field
The museum becomes a research base for the study of kurgans (burial mounds) and settlements of the Lower Podnieprovye and Prydniprovye regions.
Reorganization of the institution into a city local history museum
Expansion of the exhibition with halls dedicated to natural history and ethnography.
Expansion of the space
An exhibition hall was opened at 40 Heroes of Dnipro Avenue, which enabled the institution to become a center for hosting art and thematic exhibitions.
Beginning of modernization
With the appointment of new management, a new stage began involving the digitization of collections and the implementation of modern interactive approaches in exhibition work.
Activities under wartime conditions
Large-scale digitization of museum collections for their preservation, along with the creation of exhibitions dedicated to the heroism of Ukrainian soldiers in the ongoing Russian–Ukrainian war.
Geologist’s Room
For the 65th anniversary of Horishni Plavni, an interactive space was created in the exhibition hall, recreating the working atmosphere of researchers in the 1960s.