Vitoslavlitsy Museum

The museum was started in 1964 on the site of a vanished village called Vitoslavlitsy, on flat meadow between Lake Myachino and the Volkhov beside Yuriev monastery, and buildings were brought here from across the Novgorod north as their villages emptied. About thirty stand: churches, chapels, peasant houses, granaries, a smithy, barns and a windmill. The oldest is the Nativity church from Peredki, of 1531, which is among the oldest surviving wooden churches anywhere. Several houses are furnished with interiors of different periods and social levels, so you can compare a poor household with a prosperous one, and some hold demonstrations of weaving, pottery and other work. Because the site is flat and compact it is easier walking than the larger northern museums. Yuriev monastery stands immediately beside it, so the two are normally done together on the way out of Novgorod.

What you actually see

• The 1531 church - the Nativity from Peredki, among the oldest wooden churches anywhere.
• The furnished interiors - houses set up for different periods and levels of wealth.
• The working demonstrations - weaving, pottery and crafts shown in some buildings.
• The lakeside meadow - a flat compact site beside Yuriev monastery.

When to go

May to September. Two to three hours. Combined with Yuriev monastery next door.

Honest expectations

Some buildings are closed or only viewable from outside. Labelling is Russian. The site is exposed with little shade and mosquitoes in summer. Winter access is limited and many interiors close.

Nearby

Yuriev monastery is adjacent; Veliky Novgorod and its detinets are a short ride north.