Stripeikiai Beekeeping Museum
The Stripeikiai Beekeeping Museum ( Senovinės bitininkystės muziejus ) is a beekeeping history museum near Stripeikiai in northeast Lithuania . It was established in 1984 by the beekeeper Bronius Kazlas and shows the history of beekeeping in this area, as well as the importance of the bee in nature and in popular belief.
In 2006 the museum consisted of six buildings, around 500 exhibits and 25 wooden sculptures, some of which contain beehives . The sculptures carved by Teofilis Patiejūnas and Ipolitas Užkurnis illustrate the history of beekeeping in Lithuania and pay tribute to the role of the honey bee in mythology. They show ancient Egyptian and Indian representations as well as the Lithuanian god Babilas and the goddess Austėja , both of which are related to bees.
Cut beehives with glass covers allow visitors to take a look at the work and social behavior of the bee colonies. Panels show the role of bees in pollen distribution. The collections contain historical equipment and clothing used by beekeepers and farmers, as well as hollowed-out tree stumps that were used in beekeeping from the 15th to the beginning of the 20th century .
The Lithuanian Veterinary Academy states that Lithuanian bees are a particularly peaceful population. They belong to the European races of the western honey bee , smaller than the Italian bee and larger than the Caucasian bee .
The bee is a symbol of friendship in Lithuania, the word bičiulis refers to a particularly close friend - this goes back to the custom of joint beekeeping or dairy farming. As a sign of solidarity, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko brought three bee colonies in baskets to his Lithuanian counterpart Valdas Adamkus in 2005 , which were then given to the museum.
The museum is open from May to October, and a honey harvest festival is held in August .
Web links
Coordinates: 55 ° 24 ′ 31.9 ″ N , 25 ° 56 ′ 42.4 ″ E
- About the museum (Engl.)
- Laura Piškinaite-Kazlauskiene: The Beekeeper's Spiritual World in Museum Objects in: Pro Ethnologia 6 [1] (Engl.)