National Art Museum of Azerbaijan facts for kids

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Azerbaijan National Museum of Art
Azərbaycan Milli İncəsənət Muzeyi
Palace of De Boure - first building of the Azerbaijan National Museum of Art
Established	1936
Location	Niyazi Street 9/11, Baku, Azerbaijan
Type	Art museum
Collection size	15,000 items: 3,000 items displayed (12,000 items stored)
Public transit access	M 1 Icheri Sheher metro station

The Azerbaijan National Museum of Art (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Milli İncəsənət Muzeyi) is the largest art museum in Azerbaijan. It was started in 1936 in Baku. In 1943, it was named after Rustam Mustafayev, a famous Azerbaijani artist who designed sets for plays. The museum is made up of two buildings from the 1800s that stand next to each other. The museum has a huge collection of over 15,000 artworks. About 3,000 of these are always on display in 60 different rooms. The other 12,000 items are kept safely in storage. The museum often changes what is shown so that more of these amazing artworks can be seen by visitors.

History of the Museum
What You Can See: The Collections
Museum Architecture
Images for kids
Gallery
See also

History of the Museum

How the Museum Started

In 1936, a group called the Council of People's Commissars of Azerbaijan SSR decided to create a new, independent art museum. Before this, the art collection was part of the Azerbaijan State Museum. To get artworks for the new museum, people went on special trips to find pieces. They also bought other artworks. The museum's very first exhibition opened in 1937.

Moving to a New Home

In 1951, the museum moved to its current home. This is a beautiful building called the De Bour mansion. It was built in the late 1800s in a style called Baroque, which is known for being grand and decorative.

Important Events and Recognition

In July 1993, some artworks were taken from the museum. Luckily, they were found later and brought back safely.

The museum building was fully renovated in 2006. A new exhibition opened in 2009, showing off the updated space. In 2011, the museum received a special award. It was declared to meet the "European Museum Standard" (EUMS). This means it meets high international standards for museums, offering great services and professional experiences. This decision was made by a group called the Council of Directors of the European Economic Chamber of Trade, Commerce and Industry.

In May 2022, on International Museum Day, the museum held a special "Museum Night" event. This event used multimedia to tell stories and was part of a partnership with the United Nations. It helped to promote ideas about sustainable development.

The Museum's Library

The museum also has a large library. It contains about 9,000 scientific books, catalogs, and other professional materials about art. There is also a special collection of rare, old books.

What You Can See: The Collections

The Azerbaijan National Museum of Art has a wide variety of artworks. Its collection includes very old pieces, some dating back to the 4th century BC.

Ancient and Medieval Art

You can see ceramic bowls with old designs found in places like Nakhchivan and Mingachevir. There are also decorative lamps and glazed tiles from the Seljuk Empire period. Parts of stone carvings from the 13th-century Bayil castle are also on display. The museum has chests from the 14th-18th centuries found in Absheron and Shamakhi.

Manuscripts and Miniatures

The collection includes beautiful old handwritten books, like copies of the Qur’an and 16th-century books about stars. You can also see original miniature paintings from the 17th-18th centuries. These tiny, detailed artworks were made in Tabriz using special paints.

Azerbaijani Art and Crafts

The museum features works by famous Azerbaijani artists. These include Mir Mohsun Navvab, Mirza Kadym Irevani, and Usta Gambar Karabakhi. You can also see art by the first professional artists in Azerbaijan and by modern artists.

The museum also has many examples of Azerbaijani decorative arts. These include metal items from the 16th and 17th centuries. There are also beautiful fabrics, embroidery, national costumes, carpets, and jewelry from the 18th-20th centuries.

One special type of embroidery is called "gulabatin," which uses gold threads. This art was very popular in places like Shamakhi, Shusha, and Baku. Red and green velvet were often used as the background for the gold and silver threads. Hats and small caps called "arakhchins" were decorated with flower shapes and stars. Other clothes like "arkhalig" and "kulaja" were also embroidered with gold. The museum displays many items with this gold thread work, such as kerchiefs, shoes, and cases for combs or watches.

International Art

The museum also has a large collection of art from other parts of the world. This includes art from Western Europe, such as France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. You can also see art from Eastern countries like Iran, Turkey, Japan, China, and India. There is also a collection of Russian art.

European and Russian Art Sections

In the first building of the museum, seven rooms are dedicated to European art. These rooms feature works by Italian artists like Guercino and Leandro Bassano. French painters like Jules Dupré and Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant are also represented. You can see art from Dutch and Flemish artists such as Frans Hals and Pieter Claesz. German and Polish painters are also included.

Ten rooms in the first building are dedicated to Russian art. This includes paintings by famous artists like Karl Briullov, Isaac Levitan, and Ivan Shishkin. There are also restored examples of Russian avant-garde art, which was a new and experimental style.

Eastern Art Section

The second building, built in 1885, houses Eastern art. This collection mainly features art from Persia, Turkey, China, and Japanese art.

Azerbaijani Artists on Display

Many famous Azerbaijani artists have their works shown here. These include painters like Bahruz Kangarli, Tair Salakhov, and Azim Azimzade. The works of Sattar Bahlulzade, a very well-known Azerbaijani painter, fill an entire room. The museum also displays sculptures by artists like Omar Eldarov.

Other Unique Collections

The museum also has easel paintings and tiny book miniatures from the 17th-19th centuries. There are also lacquered miniatures from the 18th-19th centuries. A unique collection of sherbet spoons, made from mulberry tree wood, is also on display.

Exhibitions Abroad

The first artworks for the museum were gathered from cities like Saint-Petersburg and Moscow, as well as from private collections. Over the years, the museum's collections have been shown in many countries around the world. These include Canada (1966), Cuba (1967), Syria (1968), France (1969), and Iraq (1971).

Museum Architecture

The museum building has a calm, horizontal design that fits well with the taller buildings nearby. Its design was carefully planned to make it stand out and offer a nice view towards the sea.

The building uses classic architectural elements. These include special entrance areas called porticoes on the front and open spaces called loggias on the sides. These features make the building look grand and unique. It was one of the first buildings in the city to use these kinds of design elements, making it very noticeable among other structures.

Images for kids

Female idol from Shaki, Azerbaijan
Ceramic dish from Gabala
Bird figures from Nakhichevan, Azerbaijan
Ceramic dish from Nakhchevan

Gallery

Theotokos of Vladimir, late 16th century
Our Lady of Kazan, late 17th century
Bernardino Luini - St. Catherine, 16th century
Andrea del Sarto - Madonna of the Harpies, 1517-1519
Bartolomeo Schedoni - John the Baptist, 17th century
Guercino - Sleeping Endymion, 17th century
Leandro Bassano - Portrait of an Old Woman
Balthasar Beschey - Venera and Adonis
Pieter Claesz - Still life
Justus Sustermans - Portrait of F. Medici, 17th century
Michiel Jansz. van Mierevelt - Portrait of the Duke of Wallenstein, 17th century
Frans Hals - Portrait of a man
Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant - Portrait of the Empress Alexandra Fyodrovna, 19th century
Friedrich August von Kaulbach - Portrait of Grand Duchess Elisabeth Feodorovna, 19th century
Jean-Baptiste Greuze - Portrait of a young woman, 18th century
Eduard Joseph d'Alton - Portrait of a woman, 19th century
Louis Hersent - Peter I of Russia and Louis XV of France
Charles Le Brun - Banishment of Iliadore
Adriaen Brouwer - Scene at a surgeon, 17th century
Johann Heinrich Roos - Herd, 1676
Louis Victor Watelin - Landscape, 1873
Gaspard Dughet - Landscape
Ivan Aivazovsky - The road in the woods, 1857
Ivan Shishkin - The road in the woods
Vasili Pukirev - Interrupted wedding
Usta Gambar Karabakhi - Tree of life
Mirza Kadym Irevani - Portrait of sitting woman, 1870