The Historical Museum, Samokov

The Historical Museum in the town of Samokov has a rich collection of interesting exhibits. Here you can see a unique collection of works by famous Bulgarian painters from the Samokov Art School. Among them are works by its founder Hristo Dimitrov and his sons Dimitar Zograf and Zahari Zograf, Nikola Obrazopisov, Vasil Popradoykov and others. Also, on display are painting tools, paints, brushes, drawings and copiers, as well as personal belongings of Zahari Zograf and others.

From the diverse archeological collection with Thracian and late antique finds, ethnographic, documentary, photographic, artistic you will learn about the millennial history of the village, traditions, way of life, livelihood and spirituality of Samokov.

The exposition "Samokov - spirit and metal" emphasizes the importance of the city as an iron mining, craft and cultural center. Among the exhibits are models of mechanical hammers "Samokovo", from which comes the name of the city and the facilities for melting iron "Vidnya".

In the past, Samokov was known for its millennial metallurgical traditions, as well as for its crafts: tailoring, goldsmithing, weaving, tailoring, pottery, coppersmithing and others. The museum exhibits jewelry, ceramics, wood carvings, costumes and fabrics, typical for some Samokov villages Iskra embroidery, modern women's costumes and many others. A small collection of wonderful specimens is also presented by the first glass factory in Bulgaria, opened in Samokov around 1850. It employed craftsmen from Carlsbad, Karlovy Vary in today's Czech Republic. Bohemian glass products were produced - wine and brandy sets, trays, vases, etc. Among the interesting exhibits is a matchbox, produced in the earliest match factory for "burning trees" in our country in Samokov from about 1870.

A number of unique exhibits reveal the role of the city as a significant educational and cultural center during the Renaissance. Today in the museum you can see: the only well preserved list of school rules from 1861 of the Samokov boys' school; original copy of the famous book “The Fish Primer” (Ribniq Bukvar); the first Bulgarian magazine "Lyuboslovie" / 1842 / by the Samokovite Konstantin Fotinov, who set the beginning of the Bulgarian periodical press; the manual printing press of the founder of Bulgarian printing Nikola Karastoyanov, who opened the first Bulgarian printing house in Samokov in 1828; unique documents, books, etc.

The Historical Museum is among the 100 national tourist sites.

Helpful Information

Historical Museum, Samokov
Town of Samokov, st. “Prof. Vasil Zahariev ”4
Tel: +359 722 6 67 12, +359 889 849 102, email: museum_samokov@abv.bg, website: https://museumsamokov.blogspot.com
Working hours:
8.30 - 12.00, 13.00 - 17.30, no day off

Museum objects:

Art Gallery "Prof. Vasil Zahariev ”
Town of Samokov, 1 Zahari Zograf Square
Tel: +359 722 6 67 12
Work time:
10.00 - 12.00, 13.00 - 17.00, weekends: Sunday and Monday

Bayrakli Mosque
Town of Samokov, st. “49 Targovska Str”
Tel.: +359 722 6 67 12
Work time:
Currently / as of April 2019 / it is open only from Monday to Friday by the employees of the History Museum, with a ticket purchased from the museum box office.

Branch Museum Complex, Belchin
Belchin village, Samokov municipality, Sofia district
Tel.: +359 722 6 67 12, +359 886 614 814