Muzeum Mazowsza Zachodniego w Żyrardowie

About the museum

The museum was founded in 1961 as the Muzeum Historii Ruchu Robotniczego m. Żyrardowa (Museum of the History of the Labour Movement of Żyrardów). Its seat became the representative villa of Karol Dittrich junior, co-owner of the Zakłady Żyrardowskie (Żyrardów Works), built in 1886–1896 in a park setting. Despite its original name, the institution from the outset did not limit itself to the history of the labour movement, but also collected materials on the history of the town, the region and art.

After the administrative reform of 1999 the museum was run by the local government of Żyrardów County, and in 2000 the institution adopted its present name, which points to the western part of historic Masovia. The museum is entered in the State Register of Museums and acts as a centre integrating museums of western Masovia. It also runs a branch: the study of the writer Paweł Hulka-Laskowski at ul. Narutowicza 34.

The collections number more than 8,400 museum objects and are divided into departments of art, ethnography, history and iconography. The most valuable include works by the landscape painter Józef Rapacki and a large watercolour panorama of Żyrardów from 1899, shown at the Paris World Exhibition in 1900. The ethnography department presents, among other things, a reconstructed workers' room from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, and the iconography department documents the development of the factory, the town and the lives of its inhabitants in photographs from the 1870s onwards.

Highlights

• Villa of Karol Dittrich from 1886–1896 in a park setting
• Panorama of Żyrardów from 1899, shown at the 1900 exhibition in Paris
• Paintings by Józef Rapacki
• Reconstructed workers' room from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries
• Collections of photographs and documents on the history of the factory and town

Permanent exhibition

• Zbiory sztuki, etnografii i historii Żyrardowa – Exhibitions in the Dittrich villa include paintings by Józef Rapacki, the 1899 panorama of Żyrardów, a reconstructed workers' room, and photographs and documents on the history of the factory and town.

Founded

1961

Operated by

Powiat żyrardowski

Director

Gustaw Puchała

Admission & discounts

Free admission: On Saturdays admission is free.

Prices come from the town's information service; older sources give lower rates, and the official price list is not currently available online.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops

The museum runs museum lessons, workshops and competitions for children and young people; children up to age 7 enter free, and admission is free for everyone on Saturdays.

Getting there & parking

The museum is housed in the Dittrich villa at ul. Karola Dittricha 1, in the centre of Żyrardów, next to Dittrich Park.

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit