Muzeum Ludowe Rodziny Brzozowskich

About the museum

The museum was founded by Julian Brzozowski (1925–2002), a farmer who came to Sromów in 1952. He had been interested in carving since his youth, and he began to cut the first figures for the future museum around 1955, initially in the kitchen and mainly in winter. For almost twenty years about 300 figures waited to be shown to the public. He built the first exhibition pavilion from the farm’s income and opened it on 30 July 1972.

Over the following ten years Julian Brzozowski arranged moving scenes, designing and making the mechanisms for the figures himself. Further pavilions were opened to visitors in 1983, 1986 and 2001. Today the museum is run by the Brzozowski family, whose members add their own work: Wojciech carves figures, his wife Renata makes Łowicz spiders (pająki), his sister Maria paints pictures and cut-outs (wycinanki), and Ewa Barbara Zabost does embroidery.

The museum occupies four buildings surrounded by a garden. It shows more than 600 figures, most of them moving, in scenes from village life around Łowicz, such as a Nativity crib (szopka), the procession of Corpus Christi (Boże Ciało), a Łowicz wedding or the hussars. There are also scenes of sport and Polish history, Łowicz cut-outs, spiders and painted dowry chests, and, in two pavilions, more than 30 horse teams from the area around Łowicz. The museum is supported solely from the family’s private funds.

Highlights

• More than 600 linden-wood figures, most of them moving
• Moving scenes: the Nativity crib, the Corpus Christi procession, the Łowicz wedding
• Scene “Cztery Pory Roku” (The Four Seasons) with Polish sportsmen
• More than 30 horse teams in two pavilions
• Łowicz spiders, cut-outs and painted dowry chests

Permanent exhibitions

• Ruchome rzeźby i sceny z życia łowickiej wsi – More than 400 moving sculptures in the first building: the Nativity crib, the Corpus Christi procession, a line of hussars, fishermen from the Bzura and a Łowicz wedding.
• Cztery Pory Roku i skrzynie posagowe – A scene with Polish sportsmen, a collection of hand-painted Łowicz dowry chests, and life-size sculptures in folk costumes.
• Powozownia – More than 30 horse teams, agricultural tools and harnesses, and a demonstration of the work of a harness-maker and a cooper.

Founded

1972

Operated by

Rodzina Brzozowskich (muzeum prywatne)

Admission & discounts

Payment at the museum is by cash only.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Hands-on stations

Children can operate some of the figures with wooden cranks.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

After the visit you can buy souvenirs made by members of the Brzozowski family.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit