The Legacy of the Past and The Promise of the Future
(What have we inherited from the past, and what are we expecting from the future)
Aleksandra Savić
Natural History Museum, Belgrade, Serbia
The Natural History Museum in Belgrade is one of the oldest museological institutions
in Serbia, and one of our oldest specialized scientific institutions. It is the only museum of its
kind in Serbia.
It was founded in late 19th Century, in 1895, and will turn 108 this year. Its collections
contain 1.5 million specimens, which ranks the Museum amongst the leading natural history
museums of South-East Europe. It is an organisation rich in tradition and experience, with a
well-developed network of international connections.
In this brief overview, I shall attempt to present to you the history of the Museum, its
plentiful and diverse collections and some important scientists whose work enriched its
holdings. I would also like to introduce its activity in the domain of exhibitions, its social and
cultural role over time, as well the current activities of the Museum. Finally, I will say a few
words about the transition that our society is undergoing at the moment, and how it has
influenced our work, and offer our vision for the Museum in the future.
History of the Museum
The Natural History Museum in Belgrade was founded in 1895 as the Naturalist
Museum of the Serbian Land. Even before the Museum was formally founded, from the early
1900s, there were enthusiasts and nature lovers in the Princedom of Serbia, as the country was
called then, who assembled priceless naturalist collections. They were stored in the Naturalist
Cabinet of Belgrade University, which was founded by Josif Pančić.
Josif Pančić is an important scientist of world renown. He was the first President of the
Serbian Royal Academy and a Professor of Belgrade University, while his scientific work
resonates through almost all disciplines of biology, it is his contribution to botany that is
particularly valuable. His pioneering work represented the golden age of botany in Serbia.
Pančić undertook detailed research of the flora which grew in Serbia at the time, and
discovered and described close to 50 new species which are still valid and still new to science
(such as Picea omorica, Ramonda sebica, Eryngium serbicum, Centaurea derventana etc.). He
is considered a founder of the Natural History Museum, as he was the first to organise a group
of collaborators and students to collect and study specimens taken from nature.
Pančić’s students and followers – mineralogists, geologists, botanists and zoologists –
and their work on the study of nature in Serbia, contributed to the process of enrichment of
the future collections of the Museum. These were highly educated people of social and
political distinction, some of whom also maintained close connections with the Serbian Royal
family. Collections assembled by these naturalists are still being kept in the Museum. They
are highly regarded both for their scientific and their historic value. The Museum hosted its
first exhibition in 1904 in the presence of King Petar I and his dignitaries. The first
presentation of the Museum’s exhibits abroad took place in the same year, 1904, at the World
Exhibition in Paris.
The first Director of the Museum was Petar Pavlović, a geologist, also a member of
the Serbian Academy and a lecturer at the University. The Museum could be called his life
work: he spent thirty years as its Director and was completely devoted to his vocation. Petar
Pavlović studied the Tertiary period in Serbia and wrote close to 200 scientific papers. He
described two genuses (Beogradica and Odonthohydrobia) and 150 species of molluscs,
which had been unknown to science. Apart from his scientific work, he was dedicated to
educating young scientists. He was a member of the Board which prepared the first Law of
Museums in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (as the country was called at the
time). This Law of Museums was passed in 1925. During his leadership, the Museum
expanded its collection funds through organized field collection trips and gifts received from
donors.
In the course of the 1st World War, many collections were damaged or destroyed, and
many unique objects of scientific and historic significance lost. Amongst them are collections
of mammals, a collection of rare birds and the botany collection. The Archive of the Museum
was also destroyed, as well as its library, which contained rare books, manuscripts and
monographs.
In the aftermath of the 1st World War, the Museum attempted to mitigate the effects of
the destruction, and create conditions for the work to be continued. Despite many difficulties,
success followed in the domain of scientific work, and a number of scientific papers were
published in international publications. The Museum was also active in organizing field
research and collection trips throughout Serbia and Macedonia. At this time, the Museum also
had an important role in educating University and High-school students, which was achieved
by organizing their scientific excursion trips and equipping school laboratories and libraries.
During the 2nd World War, the Museum limited its field of activity to safeguarding
collections and describing material collected earlier.
After the 2nd World War, the Museum entered a period of re-growth. Its exhibition
schedule was intesified, its collections enriched, and a thriving program of communications
and collaborations with other cultural and scientific institutions established. During this
period – the period of the Former Yugoslavia – the Museum had significant support of the
State coffers.
The Museum Today
Today, the Museum has 116 collections covering close to 1.5 million items. These
naturalist collections are enormously important, as they document the wildlife of Serbia and
adjacent Balkam regions, and demonstrate the development of these areas from the ancient
times to the present. They contain specimens of plant and animal species which are no longer
exist in its original habitats, as they have either become extinct or migrated to other parts
under the influence of humans.
Several hundred holotypes and unique samples of minerals, rock, plant or animal
materials have won the holdings of the Museum importance at the international level. In 1972,
the Museum of Forestry and Hunting, and its collections of hunting trophies and firearms,
merged with the Natural History Museum.
Today’s Museum has three Departments: Geology (covering studies in the area of
mineralogy, petrology and paleontology), Biology (covering research in the area of botany,
zoology and mycology) and Supporting Services.
The Natural History Museum is one of the rare organizations in our country that
includes a specialized Research Unit, so that curators working in it also bear the scientific title
of Research.
The General Herbarium of the Balkan Peninsula, listed with the International
Herbarium Network, is one of Museum’s most important collections. This Herbarium is a
database containing data on the flora of the region of Former Yugoslavia, and includes
specimens from Bulgaria, Greece and Albania. It is estimated to contain over half a million
specimens of higher plants.
The Herbarium contains specimens of endemic and relict species from the territory of
the Balkans. The Herbarium acted as central database in the preparation of several important
editions, such as Flora of Serbia, Vegetation of Serbia and Red Data Book of Flora of Serbia.
A few other collections of importance are as follows:

collection of minerals of Trepča;

collection of minerals and ore specimens of Serbia;

collection of meteorites;

collections of paleofloras of the Devonian, Carboniferous, early Cretacean and
Tertiary ages in Serbia;

collections of Paleozoic, Mezozoic, Tertiary and Quaternary invertebrates;

collection of Pikermian fauna from the vicinity of Veles, Macedonia;

collection of amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals;

a rich entomology collection.
The Museum houses a specialized scientific library, containing over 22,000 books,
manuscripts, scientific periodicals, geographic and geological maps. The Library is the
cornerstone of research undertaken by scientists and students. The Library celebrates its
Centenary this year, and this occasion will be marked by a dedicate exhibition.
The Museum also runs an Education service, which cooperates very well with
Belgrade primary schools. Lectures and workshops are organized jointly with schools to
enrich the regular school curricula.
The Gallery of Museum, situated at the Belgrade Kalemegdan fortress, is used to
house exhibitions, presentations, lectures and promotions. The Museum Gallery prepares and
mounts 5 to 7 different exhibitions every year.
In 1998, the Museum and its specimens – one of which was a shark 5 meters long –
participated at the World EXPO 98 Exhibition in Lisbon.
This year, the Museum prepared an extensive multi-media and communications
program, marking important wildlife protection days: The Wetland Day, The Biodiversity
Day, The European Bat Night, The Days of Cultural Heritage and The Habitat Day.
The Problems and Needs of the Museum
The Museum building covers the surface of 1200 m², while the Gallery is about 200
m². This Lack of space creates problems with housing collections, designing a permanent
exhibition, enriching specialized exhibitions and offering supplementary programs.
Collections are housed in inadequate conditions using substandard technology and equipment,
and it is only through the dedicated care of the Museum staff that they are preserved from
deterioration and destruction.
The lack of space also limits acquisition new specimens. Many potential donors would
welcome an opportunity to contribute their collections to the Museum, but have not done so
because of the inadequacy of collection storage conditions.
The solution to all these problems would be very simple: a new and purpose-specific
building for the Museum. This is an issue that has dogged us since the founding of the
Museum, and it has not been solved to date. Many times, the State has expressed its intentions
to allocate a new building to the Museum. However, so far, these intensions have not been
realized.
Today, in 2003, the Museum is still situated in the same seventy-year-old building,
currently under construction.
Today’s Activities of the Museum
Although its building is old, the staffs of the Museum are young and highly educated.
There are 41 persons employed at the Museum, three holding the PhD degree, eight holding
Masters’ degree and several postgraduate students.
The Museum runs an internal PC network with individual dedicated PC and Internet
access.
The Museum’s curators are keen and active participants in domestic and international
conferences and seminars, maintain a prolific production and publication of scientific papers
in periodicals, and are often involved in projects in the country and abroad. The Museum
cooperates with other museums in Serbia, governmental and nongovernmental organizations,
and various faculties of the University and the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts. The
Museum’s employees are also actively involved in the work of the Museum Association of
Serbia, as well as that of the ICOM Serbia and Montenegro.
The Museum maintains fruitful cooperation with the media. We are involved in the
filming of specialized TV programs and films, participate in the preparation of TV and radio
contributions and newspaper articles, and prepare media releases. We work with publishing
houses to produce specialized editions and monographs.
The Museum also acts as a base for several non-governmental organizations, such as:

the Centre for Animal Marking, which researches and monitors the migration
patterns of birds and bats;

the “Mustela” Society fro Wildlife Preservation, and

the nascent Society of Odonatologists.
Our Cultural Transition and Its Impact on the Museum
Serbia has embarked on a process of transition towards broader European integration
and market economy. This process has implications for cultural activity as well. Acting in
accordance with the recommendations of the European Council, The Ministry of Culture –
responsible for museums – has announced the introduction of a new culture policy.
It has been announced that each projects of the Museum will be assessed on its merit,
and that a more flexible relationship between the Ministry and the Museum will come into
effect. This flexible relationship would introduce changes as such:

a higher degree of independence in decision-making and orientation for the
Museum;

new financing arrangements and introduction of a more self-reliant financing
system;

a higher degree of rationalization of jobs within the museum.
Museum will be given an opportunity to compete for quality self-funding projects. At
the same time, the Ministry of Culture would, for its part, lobby within the Government of the
Republic of Serbia to maximize the budget for the culture, and defend cultural interest as a
strategic goal for the state. This would necessarily reflect positively on the work of the
Museum.
At the moment, the work of the Museum is still being financed from the budget of the
Ministry, but the amount allocated to the Museum is not sufficient to cover its programs and
activities. Problems that our Museum faces are common to most museums operating in
countries which are in the process of transition: the lack of financial resources, and an
unstable political environment that prevents the Museum from being self-reliant.
In its immediate future, the Museum will have to resolve an undesirable situation
characterized by the lack of space to house a permanent exhibition and potential programs.
A new space would bring the Museum additional income, and increased the
opportunities for partial self-financing.
However, it is very early days yet for all announced changes. For the time being,
transition is still not affecting the work of the Museum critically.
Our Vision for the Future of the Museum
The Natural History Museum has won the status of an institution of national
importance, as well as the status of the central database for the study of naturalist subjects in
Serbia. The Museum is also an important scientific centre in the areas of ecology,
environmental protection and biodiversity. This activity has ensured long years of scientific
continuity. The long-term strategy of the Museum is to continue the process of knowledge
accumulation, increase the size of its collections, strengthen its influence in society and set in
motion new processes.
Short-term, by communicating better with the public, it aims to meet not only cultural
and educational, but also emotional needs of its audiences. The Museum will seek to make its
holdings more available to the public and increase the quality of the offer, to strengthen
marketing and PR activities and, finally, to acquire new space.
Future priorities include preparing a permanent exhibition, organizing more attractive
thematic and specialized exhibitions, developing quality programs and creating and
strengthening a museum “brand”, to communicate the idea of the Natural History Museum in
Belgrade as a unique centre of cultural, scientific and educational activity.