Zagłębie Museum in Będzin

The Zagłębie Museum in Będzin runs exhibitions on the history of the region in several places: in the castle, in the Mieroszewski Palace in Gzichów, in the Będzin Undergrounds and in the former Mizrachi house of prayer. The institution was founded in 1956 and was the first museum in the Dąbrowa Basin.

How the museum came about

The museum was set up on the initiative of the Society for the Care of Castle Hill, the Society of the Dąbrowa Basin Museum and the castle reconstruction committee. It opened on 22 July 1956, on the 600th anniversary of Będzin receiving its town charter. Until 1983 the museum was housed only in the castle. Then a second branch was opened in the 18th-century palace and park complex of the Mieroszewski family in Gzichów.

Exhibitions in the castle

In the castle you can see the exhibition Weapons of the Past, showing the development of weapons and armour from the 16th to the early 20th century: bladed weapons, firearms and hunting weapons, as well as suits of armour and helmets. The second exhibition, on the history of the castle and the town, brings together guild documents, maps, plans and photographs of old Będzin. The building itself is described in a separate entry on Będzin Castle.

The Mieroszewski Palace

On the upper floor of the palace are period interiors of the 18th and 19th centuries with fireplaces, furniture, silver and porcelain, and in four salons polychrome decoration from the second half of the 18th century has survived. A separate room is devoted to the painter Samuel Cygler. On the ground floor stands a reconstruction of a Lusatian-culture hut with a hearth and recreated burials, and the ethnographic part is the Zagłębie Room, that is, the interior of a cottage from the early 20th century.

Practical information

• Address of the head office: ul. Zamkowa 1, Będzin. The Mieroszewski Palace stands on Gzichowska Street, and the Mizrachi house of prayer at ul. Potockiego 3.
• The museum also makes available the revitalised Castle Hill with the palace park and the Będzin Undergrounds beneath the hill.
• Opening hours, tickets and group bookings are on muzeumzaglebia.pl; check them before your visit.