#Exhibit of the Month

This remarkable portrait of Mihai Eminescu, created by artist Alexandru Gușanov, is based on one of the four known photographs of the poet. The photograph that inspired this portrait was taken in 1869 in Wenceslas Square, Prague, when Eminescu was only 19 years old. The oval composition and harmonious color palette highlight the prominent personality and charisma of the young poet, capturing an expression that conveys both melancholy and intellectual depth.
Alexandru Gușanov (1929-2005), a Moldovan painter of Ukrainian origin, distinguished himself through his extensive work, comprising approximately 5,000 pieces - portraits, landscapes, and still life paintings. Settled in Moldova since 1945, Gușanov graduated from the Republican Art School "I.E. Repin" in Chișinău in 1952. His works were showcased in numerous national and international exhibitions and were highly appreciated in countries such as France, Hungary, Russia, and Yugoslavia. The artist dedicated a significant part of his career to creating portraits of historical and cultural figures, including Dimitrie Cantemir, Mihail Kogălniceanu, and Alexei Mateevici, which are part of the National Museum of History of Moldova's collection.

The subject of the portrait, Mihai Eminescu (1850-1889), is the most significant poet in Romanian literature, whose works reflect profound thought, sensitivity toward nature, and national identity. At the age of 19, when the photograph that inspired this portrait was taken, Eminescu was in the midst of his intellectual formation, preparing to become the iconic voice of Romanian culture. Among his most famous works is the poem Luceafărul (The Morning Star), a masterpiece of universal literature.

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Events Archive

Reopening the Lazo Family Mansion

November 26, 2018

On December 2, 2018, at 12.00, was opened the permanent exhibition „Bessarabian environment - the mansion from Piatra - interconnection of historical personalities" at the Lazo Family Mansion in Piatra, a branch of the National Museum of History of Moldova. The exhibition is opened on the occasion of the completion of the interior rehabilitation works of the Lazo Family Mansion.

The mansion from Piatra, built between 1862-1865 by Ioan and Matilda Lazo, is a typical house of the mid-19th century with an architectural style close to that of the peasant houses, with the location of the chambers around the central hall. The mansion is a large building with several rooms (the original house had six rooms), an annex and a front terrace supported by eight massive round plaster pillars, with an attic located along the façade axis, also supported by two pillars of the same size. The mansion is set in the middle of a garden, facing the valley of the River Răut.

The house is valuable first of all because it has been inhabited by representatives of a noble family, and because it is itself a historical and architectural monument. The ambience of the house gathered together many Bessarabian personalities over the years. Two generations of the Lazo family spent part of their lives in this house. Today, the mansion is considered a monument of architecture, history and culture from the second half of the 19th century and is registered as a state-protected monument of national significance.

The new exhibition entitled "Bessarabian environment - the mansion from Piatra - interconnection of historical personalities", includes a living room, a dining room, a library office and a children's room. The memorial and typological pieces from the new exhibition present the material and moral ambience of the Lazo Family Mansion with several generations of this noble family, with their epoch, with all the complexities of life, emotions and facts intertwined with the history of the personalities owners of the Mansion, of living people with their visions and occupations who have been in our history and have contributed to the development of the Bessarabian society over the centuries.

Address of the Lazo Family Mansion: Piatra village, Orhei district.