Ancient people: Slavic People, Vikings and Pruzzians

Neringa is a famous Lithuanian resort with an interesting history of the former local inhabitants which have disappeared and only monuments of their living surroundings now remind us of them. This is a land inscribed into the UNESCO world heritage list as an object of cultural landscape, created by humans and nature.

The museum is located in the oldest building of Anklam, the town at the river Peene. On five floors in the medieval building you can experience the history of the hanseatic city and the life at the Peene where also Vikings and Slavic People left their marks.

Visit the museum village in Schwichtenberg and learn something about the region's rural history in an exhibition called 'Von Huus un Acker' (About house and field). Climb up an old slavic rampart construction whose highest point is the "Schanzenberg" (125m). Discover slavic history while savouring the beautiful nature of the Brohmer Hills.

Every year is told a new story about the Duke Bogislaw X. of Ueckermünde during the Middleage spectacle in Ueckermünde. A number of people in historical costumes, market people and of course the duke and his wife participate. Enjoy Middleage atmosphere with historical food, handicraft and culture.

In the "Ukranenland" Torgelow visitors can experience a museum landscape which is unique in Vorpommern. Houses dating from the 9th and 10th century were reconstructed and are today the working place of blacksmiths and crockers. You can watch and maybe try yourself how to cast bronze. A height are the historical markets from spring till autumn. Feel 1000 years back in time when the Svarog, a reconstructed Slavic ship, reaches the harbour.

In the village Menzlin near Anklam close to the Szczecin Lagoon you can find the remains of an old camp of Slavic People and Vikings from the 9th century. Still present are several gravesites, "stone settings" in the shape of ships which was typical for the viking culture. Around the southern region of the Baltic Sea this is a unique discovery.

Culture, life, development of the landscape and politics as well as remarkable characteristics of the region from the stone age till the Thirty Years' War are presented in this museum. In several exhibitions the visitor can learn many interesting facts about the history of Pomerania. 

The Castrum Turglowe shows the history, culture and the way of living in the Middle Ages. Remains of a castle invite visitors to an adventurous experience. Every year the museum organises two big events: the Tournament of the Knights and the Castle Festival. These are great spectacles where many people in costumes entertain the guests with traditional handicraft and music.

In a reconstructed village from the 8th till 12th century visitors can explore the life of the Vikings. The traditional ways of living, old techniques of fighting and ancient methodes of handicraft are shown in this special open-air museum. A highlight every year in the summer is the Viking Festival, an international event in Wolin with competitions in fighting, everyone dressed in Viking costumes, traditional music and a vivid market life.

Besides traditional and modern Art from all over Europe the museum also shows historic and cultural collections which reflect the history of Pomerania. Four museums belong to the National Museum Szczecin. The Gallery of Traditional Art, the Gallery of Modern Art, the Nautics Museum and the Museum for Szczecin's History.

The Pomeranian Dukes' Castle in Szczecin is one of the main centres of cultural life in Western Pomerania. Rebuilt after the destruction during war it became the seat of administrative and cultural institutions. Its aim is to support and popularise artistic activity in Szczecin and the province. Each year about 30 exhibitions as well as a number of different concerts are presented in the Castle.

The religion of the Slavic people was based on natural phenomenons. But everything changed with the appearance of the Christianisation. Between 1124 and 1128 Bishop Otto von Bamberg came to Pomerania to evangelise the Slavic people. Here you find some of the places around the Szczecin Lagoon Otto travelled to.