John Paul II Coin and Medal Museum in Częstochowa

The John Paul II Coin and Medal Museum in Częstochowa is a private museum that has gathered more than 11,000 items connected with the pontificate of John Paul II: coins, medals, stamps, liturgical vestments and relics. It opened on 11 August 2011.

Where the collection came from

The museum was founded on the initiative of a Częstochowa entrepreneur and philanthropist. Preparations lasted from 2010, when a collection of about 3,500 numismatic items bearing the pope's image was bought, earlier shown among other places at the Royal Castle in Warsaw. Within a year the collection was enlarged by another two thousand pieces. The museum was opened and blessed by Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz. According to the museum's website, its founding is an offering of gratitude for the gift of health for the founder.

What can be seen here

The collection now numbers more than 11,000 items. There are more than 1,500 coins bearing the image of John Paul II, arranged chronologically by date and issuing country; most come from the Vatican and Poland. There are about 6,000 medals, including the annual medals issued by the Vatican to mark successive years of the pontificate.

These are supplemented by postage stamps and papalia, that is, mementos connected with the pope: chasubles, tableware, and also replicas of the Fisherman's Ring, stoles, capes, a crozier and zucchetti. The museum also displays relics. First-class relics include locks of hair from 1978 and 2005 and a fragment of a bandage from the assassination attempt, second-class relics are objects of daily use, including a cassock and a zucchetto, and third-class relics are mainly pilgrimage medals. The display is housed in a multimedia hall with several thousand points of light.

Where it is and what is nearby

The exhibition pavilion stands on ul. Jagiellońska, on the premises of a company, and is connected to its building. It is about 3.7 km from here to Jasna Góra, and in the city it is worth combining a visit with the Częstochowa Museum or the Match Production Museum. After sightseeing you can go to the Częstochowa Water Park.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Jagiellońska 67/71, 42-229 Częstochowa.
• Visits require a reservation through the online panel or by phone, on Saturdays by prior arrangement. Check the dates before your visit.
• Photographing the exhibits is possible for an additional fee.
• Getting there by public transport according to the museum's website: from Jasna Góra by bus line 19 to the Makro stop, from the centre and railway stations by tram line 3 to the Bukowa stop.