Brzeg is a thirteenth century city, rich in historic buildings. The castle, built by the architects Jakub and Franciszek Parr and Bernard Niuron during the years 1530-1580 and modelled on the Krakow royal residence, Wawel, is considered one of the most important Renaissance buildings in Poland. The castle's main gate is decorated with bas-reliefs depicting the kings, princes and family crests of the Piast dynasty, Poland's oldest ruling family. The interiors are covered with frescos, some for example in the form of a Piast family free. Next to the castle are the remnants of the earlier Gothic chapel of St. Jadwiga (St. Hedwig).
In 1924, when the area was still part of Germany, the castle was home to the "Heimatmuseum" (German, "Homeland Museum"). The current museum was opened in 1952, and the castle was renovated from 1965-1990, making it possible to tour its interiors.
The museum specialises in collecting artefacts related to the history of the city of Brzeg and its environs, as was as that of the Silesian Piasts and the Piast tradition in that region. It has an extensive collection including medieval art (sculptures and altar paintings); Silesian and foreign paintings from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries; prints with views of Brzeg, its castle and other Silesian cities; and weapons from the sixteenth to the twentieth centuries, including an extremely rare fourteenth-century straight bow found in archaeological excavations in Brzeg. In addition, the museum has items made by local artisans from the thirteenth to the nineteenth centuries, as well as Silesian coins and medals from the fourteenth to the twentieth centuries, documents and old prints (including part of the famous library of the Brzeg Piasts, with their signatures). There are also interesting gingerbread moulds and ornately decorated guild coffers and clocks from the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries. Unique items include the chronicle of the Brzeg shooting fraternity from the years 1623-1848, which contains colourful descriptions of its champions, among whom were the princes of Brzeg and Legnica, and a collection of 14 tin sarcophagi of the Brzeg and Legnica Piasts from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Permanent exhibits: "Silesian Art, 1400-1800"; "The Silesian Piasts in History"
Muzeum Piastów Śląskich
pl. Zamkowy 1
49-300 Brzeg
Region: opolskie
Phone: (+48 77) 416 32 57
Phone/Fax: (+48 77) 416 42 10 wew.101
WWW: www.zamek.brzeg.pl
Email: zamek.piast@poczta.onet.pl