West Kazakhstan Regional Historical and Local History Museum

West Kazakhstan Regional Historical and Local History Museum is a historical and cultural institution founded in 1832 in the city of Oral. It is an architectural and urban monument included in the list of republican significance monuments of history and culture of West Kazakhstan region. The museum is an important cultural and educational center of the region.

Historical data

The museum was established in 1836 near the Oral military school, and in 1870 was moved to the building of the Oral school (later the building of the Oral pedagogical college). In 1906 it served as an independent Cossack military museum, for which a special building was constructed. However, over the years the museum also moved to other buildings in the city. A special role in the opening of the museum was performed by the local teacher M.K. Kurilin.

The building in which the regional historical and local history museum is located is an original two‑storey 19th‑century structure in the Eastern style. It was intended for a Russian‑Kazakh professional school. The museum moved to this building in 1980. The total area of the construction is 2 432.7 square metres. Today the museum’s exposition occupies 1 809.1 square metres.

Museum composition

The composition of the West Kazakhstan Regional Historical and Local History Museum includes several branches. Among them are the museum of artist S. Gumarov, the house‑museum of E. Pugachev, the museum of A. S. Pushkin, the historical‑ethnographic museum named after Jangir Khan, the nature and ecology museum, the historical‑local history museum of S. Datuly in Syrdarya district, the historical‑local history museum named after M. Meraliyev in Karatobe district, the art museum named after D. Nurpeisova in Zhanaqala district, the historical‑local history museum of Kokterek village in Kaztalov district, the Janibek district historical‑local history museum and the “Spiritual Revival” museum. Its collections contain unique examples of gold items from the 4th–7th centuries AD, armor of Kazakh heroes, old books from the 18th–19th centuries, signs from the 17th–19th centuries, applied art artifacts, clothing and ceramics from the 18th–19th centuries, and many other objects.

Museum collection

The clay pots, vessels, bronze and iron arrowheads, and labor tools found during archaeological excavations in the museum hall provide information about the ancient history and culture of the region; jewelry, household furniture, domestic items, and artifacts from the early 19th and early 20th centuries showcase the craftsmanship of Kazakh artisans who lived around West Kazakhstan. In addition, valuable photographs, documents, and material evidence describing the political and social events and historical figures of the early 20th century in the city of Oral are displayed here. The types of agricultural products, raw material products, and information about labor heroes in the museum collection reflect the history of regional industrial and economic development. The museum’s separate department, the Mänshük Mämetova Museum, contains materials and material evidence reporting his heroism; the Emelyan Pugachev museum‑house holds documents and war weapons narrating the presence of the Russian rebel E.A. Pugachev in Oral. In the Nature and Ecology Museum, painted‑cartographic depictions of the region’s geographical situation, samples of mineral resources, and preserved images of the plants and animals found in the area are exhibited. Also, the museums of artist S. Qumarov and Russian writer M. Sholokhov operate as sections of the West Kazakhstan Regional Historical and Local History Museum. The museum preserves a total of 21 930 exhibits. Permanent and traveling exhibitions, as well as special broadcasts on regional television and radio, are organized.