Museums in Ploieşti

Museums in Ploieşti"Museums enable people to explore collections for inspiration, learning and enjoyment." Read about "The National Oil Museum" and "The History And Archaeology Museum", located in Ploieşti, a beautiful city in Romania.
Museums can be a great source of information about cultures and history. There are many types of museums, from very large museums in major cities, covering many of the categories below, to very small museums. Categories include: applied arts, fine arts, craft, archaeology, anthropology and ethnology, history, cultural history, military history, science, technology, children's museums, natural history, numismatics, botanical and zoological gardens and philately. In Ploieşti we can find: The National Oil Museum In 1857 three international events took place in Romania: 1.Romania was the first country with an output of 275t officially registered in international statistics; 2.The first refinery in the world was built in Ploieşti by the Mehedinţeanu brothers; 3.Bucharest became the first town in the world having public lightning with kerosene. In 1957, in Romania was celebrated one century of Romanian oil industry, and that was the moment when the foundation of the National Oil Museum was decided. The main activity of the museum consists of illustrating the history of Romanian oil industry and the science and technique of petroleum. There is also mentioned the contribution of this industrial branch to the economic and social progress of the country. The subject matters of the museum consist of: a. History of exploitation and petroleum utilization, laws and rules, social and political events related to; b. The beginning and evolution of geological investigations; Evolution of techniques and tools for drilling, exploitation and processing. Based on these aspects, the main exhibition was put in place and the museum was inaugurated on October 8th, 1961.The main exhibition displays in a modern arrangement its patrimony in a big hall having more than 500 m². Original documents, geological maps, technological documentation, photos and functional small – size copies are some of the most important exhibits. The second exhibition consists of a park of tools in the open air nearby different equipment used in the oil industry over 80 years ago.The third showroom is a hall presenting tools, small size equipment and apparatus used principally in extractive industry. The museum has also got a storehouse of original documents, photos and videocassettes. The library consists of more than 3,000 volumes, an important collection of ancient books about oil technique and science. We notice there "Moniteur du Petrole Roumain", a very important bilingual publication (Romanian and French) issued in the period 1900 – 1948. Among the most valuable exhibits, the museum has got a collection of oil lamps, original documents and documentation concerning great scientists of the oil industry. Some of them are: Gregoriu Ştefănescu, Grigore Cobălcescu, Ludovic Mrazec, Valeriu Patriciu, from the geology department; Ion Tănăsescu, Virgiliu Tacit, Ion Basgan, Andrei Dragulanescu, from the drilling and exploitation department; Lazăr Edeleanu, Nicolae Debie, from the chemistry department; The National Oil Museum is due to enrich its collections by acquisitions, donations and to leave this national patrimony to the future generations. Throughout its existence the museum had over 1 million visitors: students, foreign delegations, politicians, etc. The History and Archaeology Museum This institution started up its activity in a different building on 25, N. Bălcescu Street on 1 May 1953. That used to be a superb house; the Great Tsar Nicholas was lodged in 1877, having a different utilization today, as library, restoration studio, depository, etc. The present – day edifice housing the "History and Archaeology" Museum, formerly called the "Old Secondary School", conceived by the architect Alexandru Orăscu and raised between 1865 – 1866, is a large building, with white facades which cast subtle shadows and lights. After 1968, as a result of prof. N. I. Simache’s efforts, the building was assigned to the museum. The edifice has been repaired and restored several times, the latest being a radical restoration (1992 – 1997), giving back the whole authenticity to the exterior and the "aspect of palace" to the interior. In this excellent expositional space, there have been organized, pursuing the most efficient museological techniques, the numismatic and archaeology halls entitled "Michael the Brave", "1848", "I. A. Basarabescu" as well as many other rooms containing other exhibitions. The aesthetical and scientific value of the establishment has increased considerably due to the arrangement of its precincts and especially to the very inspired "Lapidarius" from the back yard. A visit to a museum it’s a great way to spend free quality time.