The first museum at Wilanów was opened in 1805 by the palace’s owner at the time, Stanisław Kostka Potocki. His aim was to help educate society and protect national identity and knowledge at a time when Poland had ceased to exist. This tradition was maintained by his son August and over two hundred years on these values are still key to the museum’s role.
The current museum, which takes up a substantial portion of the Palace’s interior, comes in two parts. Having bought your ticket in the ticket office near the gate, enter the wing on the right and descend the stairs. There you will have to deposit your coat and place shoe covers on your shoes. It is recommended that you pick up an audio guide, which is available in a number of languages as well as English, as there is very little description throughout the museum particularly in the Polish portrait gallery. Heading through a small room containing some old royal coaches, head up the stairs into the first part of the museum – The Polish Portrait Gallery – featuring portraits from the 16th to 19th century. Wander through room after room of portraits of the rich and the powerful including some fascinating Polish coffin portraits of important figures. If portraits are your thing you will find this very interesting although the lack of description and in some cases even the name of the people portrayed was rather frustrating.
The tour leads you around the top of the house and then downstairs once more where you will find yourself in the residence of the palace. Featuring suits of armour, Etruscan vases, a room featuring magnificent frescoes uncovered during restoration work after the war, residential rooms, an exceedingly rare 18th-century glass grandfather clock and even a private chapel there is a lot to admire. There are English language cards available in most rooms which give you a basic description of what to look for. The central part of the lower floor is the most impressive. It is here that you will find the private apartments of King Jan III Sobieski and his wife while the wings house the apartments of the subsequent owners of the palace. There are some lavish touches to be seen throughout the lower level and it may be of interest that the leadership of communist Poland would often use the palace to accommodate foreign dignitaries. Jimmy Carter once stayed here, while one of the beds had to be especially adapted to sleep the rather tall Charles de Gaulle when he visited. It is quite easy to spend a couple of hours wandering around the palace but be warned that it tends to fill with schoolchildren during the week and tourists at the weekends so there’s not really a best time to visit.
The current museum, which takes up a substantial portion of the Palace’s interior, comes in two parts. Having bought your ticket in the ticket office near the gate, enter the wing on the right and descend the stairs. There you will have to deposit your coat and place shoe covers on your shoes. It is recommended that you pick up an audio guide, which is available in a number of languages as well as English, as there is very little description throughout the museum particularly in the Polish portrait gallery. Heading through a small room containing some old royal coaches, head up the stairs into the first part of the museum – The Polish Portrait Gallery – featuring portraits from the 16th to 19th century. Wander through room after room of portraits of the rich and the powerful including some fascinating Polish coffin portraits of important figures. If portraits are your thing you will find this very interesting although the lack of description and in some cases even the name of the people portrayed was rather frustrating.
The tour leads you around the top of the house and then downstairs once more where you will find yourself in the residence of the palace. Featuring suits of armour, Etruscan vases, a room featuring magnificent frescoes uncovered during restoration work after the war, residential rooms, an exceedingly rare 18th-century glass grandfather clock and even a private chapel there is a lot to admire. There are English language cards available in most rooms which give you a basic description of what to look for. The central part of the lower floor is the most impressive. It is here that you will find the private apartments of King Jan III Sobieski and his wife while the wings house the apartments of the subsequent owners of the palace. There are some lavish touches to be seen throughout the lower level and it may be of interest that the leadership of communist Poland would often use the palace to accommodate foreign dignitaries. Jimmy Carter once stayed here, while one of the beds had to be especially adapted to sleep the rather tall Charles de Gaulle when he visited. It is quite easy to spend a couple of hours wandering around the palace but be warned that it tends to fill with schoolchildren during the week and tourists at the weekends so there’s not really a best time to visit.
Admission 20/15zł, Sun free. Audioguide 12zł.
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