#Exhibit of the Month

The work In Memoriam. In Memory of the Heroes Who Fell at the Nistru (1992) was developed within the Center for Culture and Military History and published under the auspices of the Government of the Republic of Moldova, the Bureau for Reintegration, and the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Moldova. Authors: Gheorghe Bălan, Vitalie Ciobanu, Gheorghe Cojocaru.

This work provides a retrospective of the events that led to the outbreak of the war on the Nistru, accompanied by photographs of the heroes who lost their lives in the battles to defend the independence and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova.

On March 2, 1992, the political conflict in the Nistru region escalated into a true fratricidal war. Under the fabricated pretext of "defending Russia's southern borders," political adventurers from the former Soviet metropolis encouraged Transnistrian separatism by arming secessionist paramilitary groups. At the same time, thousands of mercenary Cossacks and prisoners released early from jails, along with tanks and missiles, were sent against Independent Moldova, in a desperate attempt to revive the fallen empire.

Russia's undeclared war against the Republic of Moldova left behind hundreds of dead and wounded, shattered families, and villages in ruins. More than 50,000 peaceful residents from the conflict zone were forced to flee their homes, seeking refuge from the horrors of war.

For the sake of freedom and the future, Moldova's defenders faced death, enduring the hardships and humiliations of war.

During the Nistru war, 198 soldiers of the National Army and 89 personnel from the Ministry of Internal Affairs lost their lives, while 40 combatants went missing without a trace, and nearly 300 were left disabled.

Virtual Tour

Exhibitions

“Weapons and Military Equipment – an Evolution throughout Centuries”

May 18, 2013 - August 18, 2024

The National Museum of the History of Moldova possesses 4,000 pieces of weapons and military equipment of historical, technical and artistic value. The collection, created in the second half of the 20th century on the basis of archaeological finds, donations and acquisitions, covers a wide range of types of weapons from ancient times to the present day.

The exhibition "Weapons and Military Equipment - Evolution throughout Centuries" brings to the public the most representative exhibits from this collection - more than 800 items from England, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the Russian Empire, Italy , Japan, Prussia, Romania, Spain, USA, Hungary, USSR.

All types of weapons from the museum collection are presented: Western and Eastern, cold steel and firearms, offensive and of individual defense. The course of the exhibition is organized in the order of typological and chronological evolution, from the Paleolithic to the early 60s of the 20th century.

“Weapons and Military Equipment – an Evolution throughout Centuries”

From a typological point of view, the following are exhibited:

a) cold weapons (blunt, hand-thrown, edged and pointed) - spearheads and arrowheads, maces, axes, knives, halberds, swords, crossbows, sabers, fascine knives, daggers, stilettos, etc.;
b) firearms (military, hunting and civilian) - a matchlock musket; flintlock, percussion and cartridge rifles and pistols; hunting weapons, submachine guns, machine guns, etc.;
c) protective gear - helmets, shields, poleyns, chain mails, breast plates, back plates.

The oldest edged weapon at the exhibition is a Stone Age flint ax (100,000-35,000 years ago), and the oldest firearm is a 15th-century Persian matchlock musket.

Along with weapons, there are also pieces of military equipment and uniforms that come to complete the military spectrum presented in the exhibition: uniforms, headgear (helmets, shakos, peaked caps, caps, fezzes, hats, etc.), elements of uniforms (epaulettes, shoulder straps, cartridge belts, powder flasks, mess-tins, pistol holsters, map-cases, gas masks, etc.); all dating to the 18th-20th centuries.

The message of the exhibition is complemented with paintings, graphic works and photographs depicting battle scenes, types of weapons and soldiers from different historical periods (in specific clothing).

The exhibition "Weapons and Military Equipment - Evolution throughout Centuries" illustrates, on the one hand, technological progress, creative power, inventiveness and love for beauty, and on the other hand, the innate propensity for violence and the destructive power of man.