History of WUT Museum
History of WUT Museum
The idea of a museum of a technical university in Warsaw was created during the operation of the Polytechnic Institute of Tsar Nicholas II. At the beginning of the 20th century, a popular Polish magazine „Tygodnik Ilustrowany No. 1 of January 4, 1902” annouced the existence of such a museum. In the period of the Polish People's Republic, this concept was returned to. In 1978, on the initiative of the Rector of the Warsaw University of Technology, Museum of WUT was established. This unit was tasked with collecting, storing and making available collections relating to the history and traditions of Warsaw University of Technology.
Until 2001, the Museum was a department of the Warsaw University of Technology Main Library. In the year of the 175th anniversary of the University's tradition , the WUT Museum was established as separate, a non-faculty unit, organizationally subordinated directly to the Vice-Rector for General Affairs (by resolution of the WUT Senate of May 16, 2001). At the same time the Museum Council started to operate as the consultative and advisory board. The Senate Committee for the History and Tradition of the Warsaw University of Technology was responsible for the substantive supervision of the WUT Museum. At the turn of 2001 and 2002, the Museum received new rooms in the annex of the Aerodynamics Building with a total area of 450 m2. In February 2020, the Warsaw University of Technology Museum changed its location to be placed at ul. Nowowiejska 22 (office rooms and a temporary exhibition hall). In November 2015, on the occasion of the 100th Anniversary of the Renewal of the Tradition of the Warsaw University of Technology, an exhibition room was opened in the Main Building of WUT (Plac Politechniki 1), where the permanent exhibition "The History of the Warsaw University of Technology" is available to all visitors.
The WUT Museum is a university-wide organizational unit conducting scientific, teaching and service activities in the field of collecting and disseminating museum collections relating to technology, science and education, mainly related to the Warsaw University of Technology. The WUT Museum activities include: exhibitions, publishing, scientific and educational activities, conservation and archiving of collections. The Museum's collection consists of over 6,000 objects, including: documents, books, photographs, medals, postcards and three-dimensional devices. The oldest documents in the collection are those relating to Stanisław Staszic. The WUT Museum cooperates with private individuals as well as many institutions and museums. Since 2014, the Warsaw University of Technology Museum has been a member of the Association of University Museums.
