National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina

The National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Zemaljski muzej) at Zmaja od Bosne 3 in Sarajevo is the country's oldest and largest cultural institution, founded in 1888 during Austro-Hungarian rule. Its present complex, built in 1912 and 1913 to designs by Karel Pařík, consists of four pavilions arranged around a central botanical garden, an unusual layout intended to let each department have its own purpose-built hall. The archaeology pavilion covers prehistory through the medieval period, with finds from the Neolithic Butmir culture, Illyrian and Roman material, and a large group of medieval stećci, the carved limestone tombstones that are characteristic of Bosnia and appear on UNESCO's World Heritage list. The ethnology pavilion presents traditional costume, crafts, tools and reconstructed interiors, illustrating rural and urban life under Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian rule. A natural history department and a library with a large scholarly collection complete the institution. The museum is best known for the Sarajevo Haggadah, a Sephardic illuminated manuscript from about 1350, which is shown in a dedicated gallery only when that space is open. The botanical garden, with trees and paths between the pavilions, forms part of the visit. The museum's arrangement is thematic by department rather than a single chronological route. It survived the 1992-1995 siege, during which its buildings were damaged by shelling and staff protected the collections, and it was closed to the public from 2012 to 2015 because of a funding crisis before it reopened. Adults pay about 20 KM, students about 10 KM and children aged 6 to 18 about 2 KM. A full visit takes two to three hours, and the museum lies near the Marijin Dvor tram stop. Opening hours are Tuesday to Friday from 10:00 to 19:00 and weekends from 10:00 to 18:00, and the museum is closed on Mondays.