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Berat

Museum sights in Berat

  1. A

    Ethnographic Museum

    Down from the castle is Berat's Ethnographic Museum . It's based in an 18th-century Ottoman house, which is as interesting as the exhibits. The ground floor has displays of traditional clothes and the tools used by silversmiths and weavers, while the upper storey has kitchens, bedrooms and guest rooms decked out in traditional style. Check out the mafil, a kind of mezzanine looking into the lounge where the women of the house could keep an eye on male guests being entertained (and see when their cups needed to be filled). Brochures are available, but to get the most out of it, ask for a guided tour.

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  2. B

    Onufri Museum

    Kala was traditionally a Christian neighbourhood, but less than a dozen of the 20 churches remain. The quarter's biggest church, Church of the Dormition of St Mary (Kisha Fjetja e Shën Mërisë) only holds one service a year, and is now the site of the Onufri Museum . The church itself dates from 1797 but was built on the foundations of a 10th-century church. The building makes a lovely museum, and Onufri's spectacular 16th-century artworks are displayed on the ground level along with a beautifully gilded iconostasis.

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