Queues occasionally form in Rundāle Palace as they do in other European museums. To make the process more convenient to visitors we have launched e-ticket sales. We invite you to visit the ticket sales page at the introductory part of Rundāle Palace Museum webpage. Information regarding prices: http://rundale.net/en/information/prices/

E-ticket may be printed or saved in your smartphone – upon arrival at the museum you will show it to the ticket collector.

At the moment it is possible to buy a ticket for palace and park visit until 31 December 2017.

Save your time – avoid queuing at the box office!

Two unique late 17th century paintings by Nicola Van Houbraken (circa 1660–1723) are exhibited at the Blue Room besides the Golden Hall, and they excellently fit in with the still lifes with flowers by Flemish and Dutch masters. 

Also, the thread lace collection of the museum becomes richer. Valuable acquisitions are three fragments of 17th century thread laces from Italy and two fragments from Belgium, made in 17th century and 2nd quarter of 18th century, respectively. Thread laces can be seen in continuous exhibition From Gothic Style to Art Noveau and at the apartments of duchess.

FEBRUARY

25.02. Concert of the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra “Bach and Stravinsky” at 17:00 in the White Hall
Tickets can be purchased at “Biļešu paradīze” ticket outlets throughout Latvia, and at the Palace on the day of the concert. Additional information: www.lso.lv.

MAY

Mid-May – Tulips in full bloom.

From 25.05. Exhibition “From Gothic Style to Art Nouveau”, supplemented with two new rooms dedicated to the Empire and Biedermeier styles.
Exhibition on the second floor supplemented with one new room – “The hunting room”.

JUNE

Mid- to late June – Old garden roses in full bloom. Every year around the Midsummer Day, visitors are delighted by the collection of gorgeous Old Garden Roses that can be found in the garden of the Palace.

JULY

All month long – roses in full bloom. July is traditionally the month when roses reach their peak bloom.

01.07. Rundāle Palace Garden Festival
This year the Garden Festival will be dedicated to hunting theme. As usual, during the festival there will be a seminar and presentations on various garden related topics, as well as a broad entertainment programme in the garden.  63962197, 26499151

08.07. Conclusion of the XXIII International Early Music Festival in Rundāle Palace
The festival provides the opportunity for modern day people to become familiar with the Middle Ages, renaissance and baroque through music. Tel.: +371 67205485 www.latvijaskoncerti.lv

AUGUST

12.08. Concert of the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra at 18:00 in the White Hall. Name will be specified.
Tickets can be purchased at “Biļešu paradīze” ticket outlets throughout Latvia, and at the Palace on the day of the concert. Additional information: www.lso.lv.

For the fourth year in a row Rundāle Palace Museum has issued Advent Calendar offering closer look at museum collections. One does not always have the possibility during the visit to examine each exhibit to notice tiny, delicate details and nuances. However, often they deserve the most admiration. This year we focused on hand fans.

The collection of Rundāle Palace Museum includes more than 40 hand fans discovered at small antique shops in French towns or bought at the largest auction houses of Paris and Stuttgart. Chronologically collection covers the time period spanning over 200 years (from late 17th century until early 20th century). It provides representation of manifestations of various styles – Baroque, Classicism, Empire style, Art Nouveau – and enables one to evaluate different technological solutions. The hand fans are made of ivory, mother-of-pearl, tortoise shell, horn, bone, wood, silk, paper. Materials are carved, silver plated, gilded, painted with outstanding skill. Each hand fan is ideally suited to its basic function – to cool its user with easily created airflow. They served also another purpose: indicating owner’s taste, prestige and ability to follow the fashion trends, as well as enabling to communicate the mood, desires and hopes… The antique hand fans are unique source of history for contemporary person.

To view the Advent Calendar, please, follow this link: http://rundale.net/en/advent-2017/

Museum has received a donation from poet, linguist and literary scholar Lalita Muižniece (Latvia/US) – books bought in US that have once been owned by the Duchess of Courland Dorothea. The books are the first four volumes of Historische Memoiren by Friedrich Schiller published in 1790 in Jena, Germany. There are ex libris of Duchess of Courland Dorothea and her daughter Pauline, Princess of Hohenzollern-Hechingen, pasted in the books confirming that the volumes have been part of the library of Duchess Dorothea at the Löbichau manor. After her death they passed on to her daughter Pauline, who owned the Duchy of Sagan from 1839 until 1843.  Afterwards the Duchy was bought by her sister Dorothea de Dino. Thus, the name DOROTHÉE imprinted on the cover may refer both to Duchess of Courland Dorothea and to her youngest daughter.  Books are likely to have been stolen from the library of the Sagan Palace at the beginning of 1945, when inventory of the palace was lost in unexplained circumstances.

 The penultimate exhibition room offers an overview of Historicism when the development of historical styles in the 19^th century ceased with Empire and Bidermeier. A copying of all preceding styles commenced, often with exaggerated decorative characteristics. Small interior groups depict the Neo-Gothic style, Neo-Renaissance and Neo-Rococo along with variations on the Louis XVI style decorative art particularly popular in France at the time. The laden room layout is characteristic of Historicism, commanding splendour and ostentation. Display cabinets feature porcelain, glass and silver objects and fans. The prevailing sense of fashion is captured by portraits and two dresses made in France during the second half of the 19^th century.

The last room in the decorative art exhibition is dedicated to Art Nouveau, which replaced Historism in the 1890s and lasted until the World War I. This room mainly displays work by French artists – furniture by Louis Majorelle and Émile Gallé, as well as a collection of glass ware by the Daum brothers, Émile Gallé, André Delatte and other glass makers. The collection of Neoclassical furniture reflects the emerging trends of 1905 when a backlash against the decorative exaggeration of Art Nouveau first took place, marking the return to the examples of late 18^th and early 19^th century architecture and decorative art. Neoclassical style is widely represented in Latvian urban architecture and manor houses.

Two kitchens with four hearths in each room are in the east wing of the Palace. Exhibition in the west side kitchen displays the likely interior of the 18^th century together with individual collections of kitchen utensils. One of the hearths features a full-length flue, while the other – various sets of boiling and frying equipment. The forefather to a modern oven is set inside the third hearth – a masonry platform finished with Dutch tiles from the 17^th/18^th century displaying an array of pots, pans and braising dishes. The fourth hearth resembles a display cabinet and features different faience, porcelain and tin ware. The exhibition is enhanced by a presentation of how the kitchen has been depicted in art across different countries and centuries thus providing a further insight into the function of each object and its century-long unaltered appearance.

The Palace stables have already been used for exhibiting some of the Museum’s sacral art collection, including an altar and a pulpit from Lestene Church, although the latter has since been returned to its original location in the church. Now the stables feature a new exhibition of sacral art from the 17^th and early 18^th century with Zemīte Church altar as its centrepiece – a woodcarving masterpiece created in the style of Mannerism during the second quarter of the 17^th century. Its restoration lasted several years while the grey coating from the 19^th century was removed and the initial bright polychromy with silver and gold plates restored. Next to the altar are interior objects from Vāne Church – two epitaphs from the von Henning family with portraits of the church founders, an altar relief “Holy Communion” and a painted confessional. Among exhibited objects are crucifixes from Balgale, Umurga, Stende, Piltene and Iģene Churches, a pulpit from Grieze Church, painted benches from Kaldabruņa Church and a relief “Holy Communion”. Liturgical garments, embroidery, Holy Communion ware and collection plates are displayed inside glass-cases. The Lestene Church organ prospect remains in the stables and will be returned to its original location only after the Government of Latvia will officially pass a resolution to restore the once-famous Lestene Church organ.

Due to prolonged repair work the exhibit of Rundāle Palace Museum “The Vault of the Dukes of Courland” shall open on 1 June.

Contractor Partnership PST un ARMS planned to perform renovation of doors and windows of the Vault. Due to the historical significance of those premises it was decided to restore the windows instead of producing and installing new ones. As the visual appearance and structural stability of the entrance door had degraded over time the solutions of the design elaborated in 2015 do not reflect the actual situation. Necessity of restoration extended the period of performance of works, and the Vault shall be open from 1 June.

On 2 July at the Vault of Dukes of Courland in Jelgava Palace two burials holding remains of Princes of Courland Vladislav Ludwig Friedrich (1647-1648) and Leopold Karl (1693-1697) that were restored this year were consecrated.

Comprehensive preservation of the Vault of Dukes is a pursuit of employees of Rundāle Palace Museum for more than 40 years. Since 2004 the Museum implements restoration programme that receives regular financial support from United Foundation of Courland Knighthood. Already 12 sarcophagi have been restored within the framework of the programme, including also conservation of wooden caskets and textiles, preening of remains.

Prince Vladislav Ludwig Friedrich was a son of famous Duke of Courland Jacob, Prince Leopold Karl – son of Duke Friedrich Kasimir and grandson of Duke Jacob. Sarcophagi of both princes had various deformations, fissures and fractures, many elements were lost, pewter was significantly oxidized, gold plating almost completely worn off. The most complicated task was restoration of copper decoration and gold plating of the sarcophagus of Prince Leopold Karl. Restoration and conservation was performed by experts Daira Līdaka, Arvis Druviņš, Gunārs Grīnfelds, Jānis Līdaka and Vilnis Līdaka.

The ceremony was attended by Hans Martin Jenson, Bishop of Liepāja Diocese of Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia, Nicolas Baron von Behr, Chairman of Knighthood of Courland, representatives from Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, Imants Lancmanis, Director of Rundāle Palace Museum, restorers and other employees of the Museum.

On 14 July 2018 annual Early Music Festival shall take place at Rundāle Palace and the French Garden. On that day both repetitions and concerts shall take place at White Hall and Golden Hall, therefore the set of state rooms for festivities will not be open to visitors of the museum. The Short Route ticket shall grant access to the Duke’s state and private aparments and Dutchess’ apartments.

On the day of the festival Rundāle Palace Museum and the French Garden shall be open from 10.00 a. m. until 8.00 p. m. (tickets shall be available until 19.30).
We apologize for the inconveniences caused!

For possibilities to purchase tickets to the festival concerts on 14 July please contact VSIA “Latvijas koncerti”: www.smf.lv

The festival “Liepājas vasara” organized by Liepāja Symphony Orchestra this year shall for the first time take place also outside Liepāja – in Rundāle Palace and at the French Garden with five musical events to enjoy on 11 August:

4:00 PM at the Golden Hall – “The Golden Sounds – French Horns in the Palace” performed by Liepāja Horn Quartet: Ingus Novicāns, Aivars Vadonis, Mārcis Auziņš, Edgars Kalniņš;

5:30 PM at the Golden Hall – “Finesse of Strings, Grace of Flute” performed by Reinis Lapa (flute) and  Liepāja String Quartet – Līga Baltābola (I violin), Ginta Alžāne (II violin), Ingars Ģirnis (viola), Dina Puķīte (cello);

6:30 PM at the White Hall – “Conversation on Beauty” by Imants Lancmanis and Orests Silabriedis;

8:00 PM at the White Hall – “Elīna Šimkus – the Immortal Fascination of Mozart” performed by  Elīna Šimkus (soprano) and Liepāja Symphony Orchestra;

10:00 PM at the French Garden – “The Scent of Baroque Garden – A Walk with the Music” performed by  Līga Baltābola (violin), Ēriks Kiršfelds (cello).

The joint ticket of the festival covers not only all the concerts announced on the programme, but also visit to the Rundāle Palace Museum (between 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM) and French Garden (between 3:00 PM and 9:00 PM).

The joint ticket shall be exchanged for a wristband at the festival venue.

More information regarding the concerts is available on the web page of Liepāja Symphony Orchestra www.lso.lv and at www.koncertirundale.lv

The Visitor Service Department of Rundāle Palace Museum performs a survey regarding satisfaction of the visitors with the services available at the palace compound.
The visitors of the palace are asked to evaluate the quality of the exhibits and exhibitions, tours, catering and other services and to give proposals for diversification and improvement of the services.

Based on the results of the survey the museum seeks to improve the quality of the services and to find out what other services visitors would like to receive at Rundāle Palace complex.

Survey is anonymous and filling of the questionnaire shall take approximately 10-15 minutes of your time.

The questionnaire is available in four languages: Latvian, English, German and Russian.

Thank you in advance for your time! We highly appreciate your input!

Dear visitors to the Rundale Palace Museum!

We would like to inform you that the estate of Rundāle Palace Museum will be used as a movie set for the feature film ‘CTG’ by New Pictures (UK) from 24 September until 5 October 2018.

From 19 September, there are likely to be modifications to permanent exhibition displays inside the Palace and on its territory. During the filming access to some rooms will be limited.

We would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.

In an open competition for the post of the Director of Rundāle Palace Museum the tender commission appointed by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia nominated Dr Laura Lūse as the most suitable candidate amongst 16 applicants.

‘The commission positively appraised Laura Lūse’s professional knowledge and experience, including her work on the Board of the Latvian Society of Restorers, at the Art Academy of Latvia and the State Inspection for Heritage Protection, as well as her experience in managing international projects and, of course, her current role at the Rundāle Palace Museum. Whilst managing the Museum, she will be able to draw from her knowledge as a restorer and utilise conclusions and contacts gained from international collaboration, in addition to understanding everyday tasks at the Rundāle Palace Museum’, concludes the chair of commission Dace Vilsone, State Secretary at the Ministry of Culture, whilst emphasising that in this competition Laura Lūse offered the most considered and farsighted vision for the development of the Rundāle Palace Museum over the next five years.

Laura Lūse graduated from the Department of Art History and Theory at the Art Academy of Latvia and was awarded a PhD in Art, she completed postgraduate and undergraduate studies at the same institution. The first level higher professional education in polychrome wood restoration speciality was attained at the Riga Building College’s Restoration Department. Her education was further enhanced at the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property in Italy, the Institute for Art History in Germany and the UNESCO International Restoration Camp in Norway.

The new director’s most current work experience has been gained from her roles as Head of Art Research Department at the Rundāle Palace Museum, board member of the Latvian Society of Restorers, lecturer at the Art Academy of Latvia, Estonian Academy of Arts and Riga Building College, as well as previous roles at the State Inspection for Heritage Protection and Architectural Research Group (limited liability company). Laura Lūse has participated in international research projects and conferences, and is the author of research publications, lecture curriculum and exhibitions.

The current Director of Rundāle Palace Museum Imants Lancmanis – an art historian, restoration specialist of heraldry, art and architecture monuments, painter and author of several books, employed at the Museum since 1964 and as its Director since 1975 – has announced his decision to retire.

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In an official ceremony at Riga Castle, a day before the centenary of the Republic of Latvia, the highest state decorations for significant personal contribution to Latvia were conferred upon several individuals. The Director of Rundāle Palace Museum and art historian Imants Lancmanis was bestowed the Cross of Recognition (First Class Order) and appointed the Commander of the Grand Cross. This award was presented for a lifetime contribution to research and preservation of Latvian cultural-historical heritage and inclusion in a wider European legacy.

On 5 November during a solemn celebration at the Small Guild in Riga, held in honour of the centenary of the independence of Poland and the Armed Forces of Poland, Imants Lancmanis was bestowed the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland for his contribution in facilitating Polish-Latvian collaboration in the field of culture.

Imants Lancmanis decorated with the Cross of Recognition (First Class Order) and other awards: top row on the left (from the centre) – Order of the Three Stars, France’s National Order of the Legion of Honour; in the second row – Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, the Netherlands’ Order of Orange-Nassau, France’s Ordre des Arts et des Lettres; around the neck – National Order of the Legion of Honour (Commander), on the lapel – Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (Commander) ribbon.

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Back in the days when meals where prepared daily on an open hearth over a fire, each household had various utensils and appliances to ease the cooking process. Originally, these were constructed from wood, later – forged iron. One of the most essential kitchen utensils was a device used for suspending the cauldron.

The simplest solution – hearth chains were ordinary chains that were hung from a built-in crossbeam inside the funnel and an S shaped hanger, its upper part hooked on of one the chain holes while the other held the cauldron. The height of the cauldron was adjusted by moving the S shaped hanger higher up or lower down the chain.

More intricate cauldron supports are referred to as hearth hooks. There are two types depending on their construction – hanging hooks and built-in hooks.

Just like the chains, hanging hearth hooks were suspended from a built-in wooden crossbeam. The upper part of the hook was either an iron bar curved in a semicircle or an attached ring (in this instance the hook was secured to the crossbeam using an S shaped hanger or suspended from a hanger affixed to the crossbeam). Its lower end featured an adjustable backstop lever, which held a plate – its lowest part was contracted and curved in a semicircle forming a hook for the cauldron, while its outer side was shaped like a saw with teeth loosely spread out. This set up allowed to effortlessly slide the saw-like plate with the attached cauldron up and down the length of the plate and adjust distance from the fire by locking the backstop lever in the required notch.

Wealthier home owners desired something better than a hanging hearth hook because in their homes the hearths were bigger and fire places ampler, therefore a more convenient and a safer solution for food preparation was needed. Built-in adjustable hearth hooks were devised as an alternative to hanging hooks. These hooks had a right-angle construction. A diagonal abutment joined horizontal and vertical bars to improve the hook’s load bearing capacity. Its vertical bar was fastened through built-in iron wall hoops (like door hinges), which allowed turning the hook from side to side. A flat-iron plate with corrugated ends was suspended from the horizontal bar. Since the plate was hooked on the bar and not fixed in position, its top end could slide along the horizontal bar with a cauldron hooked on the opposite end. More elaborate constructions featured a vertical line of drilled holes in the plate’s lower part and an S shaped hook for the cauldron. This set up allowed adjustment of the elevation of the cauldron above the fire.

In comparison to hanging hooks, built-in adjustable hooks were more convenient. They permitted filling and positioning of cauldrons away from the hearth. The hook was turned to bring cauldron above the fire only when everything had been prepared. This also made the detaching of cauldron significantly more convenient, safer and easier because the hook could be smoothly turned sideways and away from the fire. The advantages of built-in adjustable hooks were particularly significant for handling large and heavy cauldrons.

The hearth hooks from the 17^th and 18^th century reveal that blacksmiths not only endeavoured to improve the design of the construction to make these hooks more convenient but also began to express their own creativity. The hooks were adorned with various design elements and decorated with ornamental, flower, leaf and other motifs.

Since May 2018 the Rundāle Palace Museum has featured a permanent exhibition of ancient kitchens. The idea behind this exhibition was conceived a long time ago and preliminary work lasted several years – kitchen utensils in the museum’s collection were examined and further research carried out reflecting on what else might be needed to create a comprehensive representation. Missing items were diligently sought and acquired. Now the exhibition displays not only the afore mentioned hearth chains and hooks but also log holders, spits, bellows, various cauldrons, pans, dishes, colanders, ladles and other kitchen utensils.

The exhibition and presentation on ancient kitchens is open to all visitors free of charge on the ground floor of the Rundāle Palace Museum.

Author: Jānis Lasmanis,
Restorer of the RPM Scientific Restoration Department

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