Polytechnical Museum, Science museum in Tverskoy District, Moscow, Russia
Polytechnical Museum is a technology museum in Tverskoy District, Moscow, Russia, displaying objects related to Russian and Soviet science history. The collection holds more than 160,000 items including mechanical calculators, telegraphs, cameras, instruments for demonstrating physical laws, and models of early aircraft spread across multiple floors.
The institution opened in 1872 after a large technical exhibition that celebrated the 200th anniversary of Peter the Great's birth. Over the decades the collection grew and documented both the industrial development of the Russian Empire and the technological advances of the Soviet era.
The building takes its name from the goal of making technical knowledge accessible to everyone through hands-on learning. Today visitors join workshops where physics and chemistry experiments are demonstrated, while families explore interactive stations that encourage curiosity about how things work.
The building sits near the city center and can be reached easily from several metro stations. Guided tours are offered in several languages and help visitors understand the different sections of the house, which focus on areas such as mechanics, optics, communication, and transportation.
The facade uses pre-oxidized copper that gives the building a warm brown color and continues to change over time. Vertical cuts between auditoriums let daylight reach the lower floors and create surprising light effects inside the rooms.
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