About the Place
The Regional History Museum of Sofia, formerly known as the Museum of the History of Sofia until 2016, is located in the former Central Mineral Bath building in Sofia.
Back in 1928, at the suggestion of Sofia's mayor, Vladimir Vazov, a decision was made to establish a municipal museum. The museum's inaugural permanent exhibition opened its doors at 3 Banski Square on December 1, 1941. Unfortunately, during World War II, this building was destroyed due to bombing.
Despite losing its physical space and exhibition area for many years, the museum continued its work of organizing exhibitions and fulfilling its responsibilities in researching and preserving historical artifacts on behalf of the city.
In its early years, the museum also served as a city library and archive. However, in 1952, the city art gallery, library, and archive became separate independent institutions, no longer under the museum's umbrella.
In 1998, the Municipal Enterprise "Old Sofia" was established based on the museum, eventually transforming into the Municipal Cultural Institute Museum of Sofia History in June 2012. In 1998, the Sofia Municipal Council decided to renovate the Central Municipal Mineral Bath into a museum, which officially opened its doors on September 17, 2015. By the end of 2016, the Museum of History of Sofia was granted a higher status and was restructured into the Regional History Museum - Sofia.
The museum boasts an impressive collection of over 120,000 movable cultural artifacts, with some dating back to the Neolithic Age, discovered during archaeological excavations in the Slatina district. Additionally, there is a specialized scientific library containing approximately 12,000 items, including a manuscript from 1820 and a printed book from 1714.