Exciting News: Winners of the 2025 Gloria Musaealis Museum Competition Revealed! Liberec, Odry, and Vysoké Mýto Take the Spotlight
Each year, the Gloria musaealis National Museum Competition showcases the most outstanding exhibitions, publications, and initiatives by Czech museums and galleries. This competition highlights not only remarkable projects, but also the contributions of the individuals involved – including curators, historians, conservators, educators, authors, and entire museum teams. It is co-organised by the Ministry of Culture, the Association of Museums and Galleries of the Czech Republic, and the Czech Committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM). Since it began, the competition has gained the admiration of professionals in the field and has been effective in guiding the general public towards museums that are truly worthwhile to visit.
The top museum exhibition was presented by the North Bohemian Museum in Liberec
First place in the Museum Exhibition of the Year 2025 category was awarded to the North Bohemian Museum in Liberec for its exhibition People at War: The Fates of Liberec’s Residents during the Second World War, which ran from 19 June 2025 to 4 January 2026. This exhibition examined the stories of twelve specific individuals whose lives were directly impacted by the Second World War and the Nazi regime. The curators researched almost 60,000 records to showcase diverse members of the population in Liberec, including victims of Nazism, evacuated students, and those involved in the war effort. The visual presentation designed by artist ToyBox added an especially striking touch to the exhibition.
Second place in the Museum Exhibition of the Year 2025 went to the West Bohemian Museum in Plzeň for the exhibition ‘Large and Small Creatures of the Ordovician Sea, or a Unique Window into Prehistory’, showcased from 20 June to 17 November 2025. This exhibition displayed the museum’s latest acquisitions, particularly a remarkable collection of unique fossils from Morocco. These fossils helped visitors gain insight into ancient marine ecosystems as well as the importance of Ordovician deposits, which form a crucial part of the geological foundation of the Plzeň region and the Rokycany region.
Third place was granted to the Regional Museum and Gallery in Česká Lípa for the exhibition Narrative 1945, which was open from 9 May to 28 October 2025. This project concentrated on the events at the end of the Second World War and how public interpretation of those events has shifted over time. Contemporary documents and genuine testimonies revealed not just tragic stories, but also how memory has transformed, the various interpretations of events, and later interactions between former neighbors.
Special Award: Humpolec, Litoměřice, and Josef Šíma in Plzeň
The Special Award in the Museum Exhibition of the Year 2025 category went to the Municipal Cultural and Information Centre in Humpolec – Dr Aleš Hrdlička Museum for its innovative Ethnographic Exhibition, which opened on 14 October 2025 for the museum’s 130th anniversary. The exhibition showcases both urban and rural lifestyles in the Humpolec region during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A creative theme connects the two sections: the flax stalk, whose leaves form the display cases and presentation platforms. The exhibits are enhanced by large-format photographs, interactive touchscreens, and an animated film about cloth-making and flax production.
Another special award was given to the North Bohemian Gallery of Fine Arts in Litoměřice for the exhibition Parisiennes: Czech Women Artists and France, which took place from 18 June to 28 September 2025. This exhibition featured works from 25 female artists of Czech origin whose careers between 1890 and 1990 were influenced by French art education, time spent in France, or connections with the local art community. Besides showcasing well-known artists, it also brought attention to those who were popular in their time but have sadly been overlooked since.
The Czech ICOM Committee Award was presented to the West Bohemian Gallery in Plzeň for the exhibition Josef Šíma: Between Worlds, open from 24 October 2025 to 1 March 2026. This exhibition focused on the connections between the Czech and French cultures in Šíma’s artwork, the interaction between visual art and poetry, and his relationships with French poets. It was developed with input from Czech and French experts on the artist’s work and included valuable international loans.
The Museum Publication of the Year is a book about the Odra region
First place in the Museum Publication of the Year 2025 category was awarded to the Oderska Museum for the book Odry: The First Town on a Young River authored by Adam Hubáček, Hana Komárková, Zdeněk Orlita, and Martin Vitek. This intricate monograph covers the history of the town of Odry from the Middle Ages to the end of the 20th century. It not only delves into the significant demographic changes within the town and its surrounding area but also aids in comprehending the local identity of a place with a complex history.
Second place went to the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague for the publication Where Are All the Flowers? / Textile Printing: Clothing and Scarves (1920–1990) by Konstantina Hlaváčková. This visually stunning and academically impressive book examines the printed textiles produced in Czechoslovakia from 1920 to 1990. It tracks notable changes in patterns as well as artistic, technical, and ideological influences, while placing special emphasis on how scarves served as vehicles for messages, fashion trends, and artistic expression.
Third place was awarded to the Regional Museum in Chomutov for the book Confession of Faith in Pictures: Murals from 1614 in the Franciscan Church in Kadaň by Milena Bílková. This publication presents a remarkable collection of murals in the Church of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary and the Fourteen Holy Helpers located in Kadaň, guiding readers through the church and its various scenes, and complemented with both overview and detailed photographs.
A special award in the publications category went to the Gallery of Fine Arts in Hodonín for the book Antonín Blažek (1874–1944): Architect of Unobtrusive Modernism, authored by Jan Galeta, Martin Šolc, and Tomáš Valeš. This book is the first in-depth exploration of the work of architect Antonín Blažek, who significantly contributed to the design of numerous public buildings, primarily in Moravia. Notably, he was responsible for designing the House of Artists in Hodonín, which now houses the gallery.
The Museum Achievement of the Year is the new technical museum in Vysoké Mýto
First place in the Museum Achievement of the Year 2025 category was awarded to the Regional Technical Museum in Vysoké Mýto for its project introducing the new Regional Technical Museum. This museum has come to life through a well-planned renovation of a former agricultural college and now offers visitors eight exhibitions with hands-on elements revolving around the physical principles applied in industrial production. The project also includes a cultural and educational centre. The city promotes the new museum as a place where the region’s technical stories come to life, and it also serves as a storage site for heavy machinery, including the famous Karosa buses.
Second place in the Museum Achievement of the Year 2025 category was awarded to the Moravian Museum in Brno for the Venus 100 project. This initiative celebrated the 100th anniversary of the discovery of the Věstonice Venus, which is one of the most important archaeological finds from the Early Stone Age. The project included several exhibitions that examined the conditions surrounding the discovery, the significance of this renowned piece of prehistoric art, its evolution over time, and its impact on modern art.
Third place in the Museum Initiative of the Year 2025 category was awarded to the National Technical Museum for the project ‘Rescue of part of Emil Příhoda’s Praga car collection’. Thanks to the relentless efforts of several organizations and exceptional funding from the Ministry of Culture, it has been possible to preserve a remarkable collection of historic Praga cars. The collection of the National Technical Museum has been enriched by fifteen vehicles made between 1921 and 1946, while other cars have been sent to the Technical Museum in Brno and the Military History Institute in Prague.
A special award was given, based on the recommendation of the competition’s honorary committee, to the Regional Museum in Ústí nad Labem for the project ‘The Kingdom of Soap Bubbles’. This full-length documentary tells the story of the Schicht family, who founded a food and drugstore enterprise, whose fortunes are closely linked to the major events of the 20th century. It also narrates the journey of the current generation returning to Ústí nad Labem and their attempts to use the former family villa as a means for Czech-German reconciliation.
Where can you visit these award-winning museums?
The Gloria musaealis competition each year proves that museums are not just dusty storage places filled with old items and glass cases, but instead dynamic spaces where you can explore history, science, art, technology, personal narratives, and current issues. While some of the exhibitions that won awards have concluded, the institutions themselves still deserve a visit.
