Slovak National Museum – Museum of Jewish Culture

Slovak National Museum – Museum of Jewish Culture was originally established as the Department of Jewish Culture under the Slovak National Museum – Historical Museum. It became an independent specialized museum only in 1994, although already in 1993 a permanent exhibition of Jewish culture was established in the Zsigray Manor, which is still the seat of this cultural institution. One of the key ideas during the founding of the Museum of Jewish Culture in Bratislava was the effort to eliminate taboos surrounding Judaism and to present the several centuries of the Jewish minority’s presence in Slovakia. The location of Museum of Jewish Culture is very significant, given that the Zsigray Manor is one of the last two remaining buildings of the original „Judengasse“ – the Jewish street in Bratislava.

The most important aim of the SNM – Museum of Jewish culture is to collect, keep, preserve and present the objects of Jewish material and spiritual cultural heritage. It bears an important role of breaking down prejudices towards Judaism and Jewish people by presenting the several centuries of the Jewish community presence in the territory of today´s Slovakia. 

Museum also has branches in Prešov (permanent exhibition of Judaica in the local synagogue) and Sereď (permanent exhibiton of the Holocaust Museum in Sereď). The latter, in particular, plays an important role in Holocaust education, education for tolerance and the prevention of racial discrimination.

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