National Museum of Slovenia

The National Museum of Slovenia is the country's oldest and largest museum of cultural history, and its main building on Muzejska ulica in the centre of Ljubljana is one of the capital's grand public buildings. The museum traces its origins to the Provincial Museum of Carniola, founded in 1821 under Habsburg rule, and it grew with the collections of the Carniolan nobility and scholars into the institution that now tells the story of the land and people of Slovenia from the earliest times to the modern age. The present palace, a neo-Renaissance building completed in the 1880s, was designed to house it and is lavishly decorated, with a staircase and halls that are worth seeing for their own sake.

The prehistoric collections are among the best in the region. They include the finds from caves, lake dwellings and settlements that show how people lived here from the Stone Age onwards. The best known piece is a bone from the cave site of Divje Babe, near Cerkno, which is claimed to be a flute made by Neanderthals some sixty thousand years ago and has been called the oldest musical instrument in the world. The claim is debated by scholars, who argue about whether the holes were made by people or by carnivores, but the object is unquestionably a fascinating relic, and it is the museum's most famous attraction. Another treasure is the Vače situla, a bronze bucket of the Early Iron Age, decorated with scenes of feasting, riding and ritual, which gives an unusually vivid picture of life in the early first millennium BC and is one of the most important finds of its kind in Europe.

The Roman period is also well represented. Ljubljana stands on the site of Emona, a Roman town founded in the early first century AD, and the museum displays inscriptions, sculpture, jewellery, glass and everyday objects from Emona and the roads and settlements of the region, helping to explain how the area fitted into the Roman empire. Exhibitions on later periods show the migration of peoples, the medieval centuries and the Habsburg era, and the museum also has collections of coins, weapons, furniture and applied art.

Practical details change, so check the museum's website for opening hours, ticket prices, discounts and free days, and for guided tours in Slovene and other languages, which are offered by arrangement. The museum has several branches around the country, including some in castles, which may have separate tickets. Allow two hours for the main building.

The museum is a short walk from other sights. Congress Square, Križanke, the City Museum of Ljubljana and Cukrarna are within walking distance, the Free Walking Tour passes nearby, and Ljubljana Cathedral, Ljubljana Central Market, Dragon Bridge, Butchers' Bridge and Ljubljana Castle are not far. The Franciscan Church of the Annunciation and the Cemetery For Slovenian Notables round out a day.

It suits history lovers, families and curious travellers. Prehistoric Treasures is the exhibition to ask for, with the Vače Situla as its star. Slovenia’s story is told here with real objects.