Muzej Ribnica

About the museum

The museum was founded in 1958 in the partly renovated Ribnica Castle. Its founder, Janko Trošt, conceived it as an ethnographic museum collecting material on the woodworking and pottery crafts. The first exhibition of woodenware and pottery opened in 1961. After restoration projects in 1986 and during the 1990s, the museum’s activities expanded considerably.

In recent decades the museum has researched and presented the whole history of the Ribnica Valley and its hinterland. Today it operates within the public institute Rokodelski center Ribnica, and has exhibitions in two locations: in the Rokodelski center Ribnica and in Ribnica Castle. In the castle tower there is a permanent exhibition on witch trials; in the Rokodelski center, among other things, the exhibition “Suhorobarstvo & lončarstvo” (Woodenware & Pottery), which received the Valvasor Award for outstanding achievements in museology for 2022.

The museum is also connected with the Galerija Miklova hiša (Miklova House Gallery), the Škrabčeva domačija (Škrabec Farmstead) and a museum shop with products of Ribnica craftsmen; in the workshop it is possible to see a demonstration of making woodenware and pottery.

Highlights

• Permanent exhibition “Suhorobarstvo & lončarstvo”, recipient of the Valvasor Award for 2022
• Exhibition “Boj krvavi zoper čarovniško zalego” (Bloody Fight against the Witch Brood) in the castle tower
• Collection of Biedermeier furniture of the Rudež family
• Demonstration of woodenware and pottery making in the workshop
• Ribnica Castle as an exhibition venue

Permanent exhibitions

• Suhorobarstvo & lončarstvo – The renovated permanent exhibition in the Rokodelski center presents woodenware, pottery and peddling in the Ribnica Valley, including a peddler’s licence from 1492.
• Boj krvavi zoper čarovniško zalego – The exhibition in the castle tower presents witch trials in Slovenia, torture and medicinal herbs, with replicas of torture devices and the record of the Ribnica trial of 1701.
• Zbirka pohištva družine Rudež – The collection presents the Biedermeier furniture with which the Rudež family furnished their castle.

Founded

1958

Operated by

Javni zavod Rokodelski center Ribnica

Admission & discounts

Admission prices are given for the exhibitions in the Rokodelski center; entry to the gallery is free. Price list valid from 1 November 2026. Free admission to the exhibitions for holders of valid museum cards PRESS, ICOM, SMD and SED, members of the Študentsko arheološko društvo (Student Archaeological Society) and members of the Muzejsko društvo Ribnica (Ribnica Museum Society).

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Kids’ birthday parties

The museum has educational programmes, technical days and birthday workshops for children; a family ticket is available.

Getting there & parking

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Museum shop with products of Ribnica craftsmen in the Rokodelski center.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties
• Corporate events
• Weddings / ceremonies

The hall of the Rokodelski center can be rented (commercial €55 per hour, non-commercial €40 per hour), as can the wedding hall (€250 per hour) and the castle grounds; the full price list is published on the website.

Plan your visit