What is the best way to get to the Petroglyph Museum?

The museum is easily accessible by hiking up from the Flower Park or by walking from the Academic Gallery. There's also a signpost leading to the museum, making it easy to find.

What can I expect to see at the Petroglyph Museum?

The museum features a stunning collection of petroglyphs, which are ancient rock carvings that date back over 6,000 years. The museum also offers a fascinating glimpse into the region's history and culture.

Are the petroglyphs at the Petroglyph Museum well-preserved?

Yes, the petroglyphs at the Petroglyph Museum are very well-preserved and offer a glimpse into the region's rich history.

Is the Petroglyph Museum suitable for families?

Yes, the Petroglyph Museum is a great spot for a family outing or a romantic date. The museum's unique location offers breathtaking views of the surrounding area, and the staff is friendly and knowledgeable.

Can I take photos at the Petroglyph Museum?

Yes, you can take photos at the Petroglyph Museum, but please be respectful of the exhibits and other visitors.

Is the Petroglyph Museum open year-round?

No, the Petroglyph Museum has limited hours of operation, so be sure to check the schedule before planning your visit.

Are there any guided tours available at the Petroglyph Museum?

Yes, the museum offers guided tours, which can be a great way to learn more about the exhibits and the region's history.

Can I purchase souvenirs at the Petroglyph Museum?

Yes, the museum has a gift shop where you can purchase souvenirs, but the selection could be improved.

Petroglyph Museum Pyatigorsk - Unforgettable Adventure

Hello!

Our family recently got back from an amazing vacation in Pyatigorsk, and besides relaxing at the sanatorium, we visited some really cool places, including the Museum of Stone Antiquities under Open Skies. This is a branch of the Pyatigorsk Regional Museum, which is conveniently located nearby.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities is situated in the Nagornyi Park on the ridge of the Hot Mountain, which is a unique natural monument, not far from popular attractions like the Chinese Pavilion and the sculpture of the Eagle Tormenting a Snake – a symbol of the KMV.

You can get to it by hiking up from the Flower Park, or by walking from the Academic (Elisavetinskaya) Gallery. There's a signpost leading to the museum.

Here's a photo of the museum.

Museum of Stone Antiquities, Pyatigorsk The museum has a fascinating history – it was first opened back in 1850, but unfortunately, it didn't last long. And then, six years ago, it was revived.

In June 1850, at the behest of Prince M.S. Vorontsov, the Museum of Antiquities was opened in Pyatigorsk, near the road leading to the Elisavetinskaya Gallery. Its exhibits included over a dozen rare ancient stone statues, crosses, and slabs with inscriptions and images of people and animals.

The Museum of Antiquities existed until 1881, when its most valuable exhibits were sent to the Imperial Russian Historical Museum. The other monuments remained in Lermontov's Grotto and along the paths of the Flower Park until the Soviet era. Later, some of them were lost, while others were preserved in the collections of the Pyatigorsk Regional Museum.

Here's a brief overview of the museum's history.

The museum officially opened on March 21, 2016. On that day, the museum gained another unique exhibit - a large slate from the 4th millennium BC featuring the Tree of Life.

The museum's fence is transparent, so you can see the statues from the other side. There's a ticket booth nearby. The entrance ticket costs 100 rubles, and kids get in for free. I'm not sure what age limit applies, but my 7-year-old son didn't need a ticket. You can book a guided tour, but I didn't look into that.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, Pyatigorsk The museum is closed on Wednesdays, just like the main local museum. There are weather restrictions in place. If it's extremely hot, cold, or rainy, the museum will be closed. Keep that in mind when planning your visit.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, Pyatigorsk The first exhibit is just a few meters from the museum entrance, at the intersection of the paths leading to the museum and the Elyzavetinskaya Gallery. It's a stone with three surnames and a year - 1873. There are also some abbreviations on top. I'm not sure if it's a grave marker or a memorial inscription - I couldn't find any information about it.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, Pyatigorsk

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, Pyatigorsk Just outside the museum entrance, there's a poster called the Summit of Russia. It's a picture of Elbrus with 250 QR codes underneath, each with a historical fact about the mountain. It's a nod to General Emmanuel's 250th anniversary, who did a lot for Pyatigorsk. There are plenty of Emmanuel-themed spots in the city, including a park and a peak named after him on the Mikhailovsky Ridge.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, Pyatigorsk Here are some examples of the QR codes.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, Pyatigorsk The instructions on how to use this image are right next to it.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk Now let's head into the museum itself. Over 170 years ago, and still today, the museum brings together a range of stone monuments on a relatively small, uniquely laid out and decorated space. These include ancient, medieval, and more recent historical sculptures, crosses, steles, tomb details, gravestones, cult stones, millstones, stupas, examples of stone carvings and inscriptions, and more – all from the Stavropol region and other areas of the North Caucasus.

Alongside the fascinating historical and cultural information carried by dozens of monuments, their accompanying signs, and the 'Road of Time' displays arranged in chronological order around the museum, visitors get to experience an incredible atmosphere and step into a world of myths, legends, and mystical ideas.

We're greeted by two millstones: one from a river mill and a relatively younger one from a more prosperous time.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk They belong to completely different eras.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk The ancient river millstone is partially destroyed.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskThey recommend walking clockwise to see the exhibits in chronological order. The museum's pathways are shaped like a snail shell.The oldest exhibit is the Stele of the Tree of Life, dated IV thousand years BC.

This stone was here on the museum's opening day after being recreated in 2016.

There's a legend that the stele is unusually warm all year round. This image just makes you want to touch it – you can feel the energy.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskThe next exhibit is the walls of an ancient box, dated III thousand years BC. They were found on a kurgan burial mound.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskThey feature geometric shapes, but the details are pretty vague.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskThen comes the slab from a dolmen-style tomb, covered in ornamentation and overgrown with moss. It's dated II thousand years BC.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk Next up is a more well-preserved exhibit - a stone stupa dating back to the 1st millennium BCE. I've always been fascinated by exhibits that give us a glimpse into the daily lives of ancient people. You can't help but wonder who used this, what they did with it, and what they were thinking...

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk The next exhibit is the Tuzlugsky Menhir, dated between the 8th and 7th centuries BCE. The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk Here's a full-scale replica, created in 2022. A menhir (from the Breton language, meaning 'long stone') is a simple megalith in the form of a roughly hewn stone or boulder, where the vertical dimensions are significantly greater than the horizontal.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk And here's an authentic fragment. Unfortunately, the reason why the Menhir was smashed and thrown into the gorge in 2008 remains unclear.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in PyatigorskI was really impressed by the condition of this Sarmatian warrior statue, which dates back to the VI-V centuries BCE. The detail on the statue is still pretty sharp, considering its age.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in PyatigorskThis is one of the most interesting exhibits I saw - a Bosphoran tombstone with a Greek inscription, dating back to the II-III centuries CE. The translation is provided next to it.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in PyatigorskIt's a beautifully crafted piece of white marble, discovered in 2007.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in PyatigorskI was also fascinated by this petroglyph-covered stone, which dates back to the VI-X centuries CE.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk I love how this image clearly shows an archer releasing an arrow, and a bit less clearly, a person riding an animal with horns - that's exactly how I saw the lower image.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk This small but interesting exhibit is another everyday item - a hand-quern stone, dated to the end of the 1st millennium AD.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk A Christian cross from the 9th-10th centuries AD is carved onto a tombstone, discovered on Mount Besh Tau in the 1970s.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities in Pyatigorsk A Pecheneg female statue, dated to the 12th-13th centuries AD, is a great find - although the face has partially crumbled, it was intact when the museum first opened. It's clear why artifacts like these are better preserved in a controlled environment, behind glass. The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskWe circled back around to the entrance and found this medieval sacrificial stone with animal depictions, dated back to the 13th-14th centuries AD.

I could clearly see an elk on the right side, and while the left side was harder to make out, it looked like another elk.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskAnd finally, we made our way to the central figure of the museum – the statue of Duka-Bek, dated back to the 16th-17th centuries AD.

In the center of the exhibit stands a particularly enigmatic three-meter-tall 'guardian of cultural heritage,' a symbol of vertical time, a hub of unresolved reliefs and narrative images, and a carrier of an unmistakably undeciphered inscription – Duka-Bek.

The museum features a full-scale replica, with the original housed in Moscow.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskThe statue has clear depictions of people, their daily lives, and battles.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskOne of the first architects of Pyatigorsk attempted to decipher the inscription on this statue.

Piatigorsk Museum of Stone AntiquitiesChecking out the original statue, you can see what it looked like in its first form on this museum photo. It's tiny, but the statues are massive. Unfortunately, not everything from the original museum made it to the new one.

Piatigorsk Museum of Stone AntiquitiesNext to the statue, there's a relatively 'young' exhibit - a set of mortars and pestles, dated to the XIX - early XX century.

Piatigorsk Museum of Stone AntiquitiesWrapping up the exhibit is a tombstone from the grave of Colonel Kotyrev, the commander of Mоздокская fortress, dated to 1823.

Piatigorsk Museum of Stone AntiquitiesThroughout the perimeter of the museum, there are info boards with historical facts about the stones, along with photos. They match the era of the exhibits nearby.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskMost of the museum isn't shaded, and there are only a few trees in a small part of it. That's probably why they ban visits during the heat. Dirt paths are covered with small gravel, making it easy to walk around.

We weren't sure if we could touch the exhibits, but nobody was around to enforce it. During our visit, there were no staff members or other visitors on the premises.

Still, we decided not to touch anything, as you usually shouldn't in museums.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskOur tour took around 30-40 minutes. Of course, it's more interesting to explore the exhibits with a guide, as not all the facts are displayed on the information boards. Many of the exhibits are probably shrouded in legends and myths.

The Museum of Stone Antiquities, PyatigorskThe view from the museum's territory is stunning, with the Flower Park, Mount Mashuk, and Pyatigorsk in the background. I really enjoyed the museum, and I'd recommend visiting it.

You might also be interested in reading reviews of other places in the Caucasus Mineral Waters region:

The Orjonikidze Sanatorium in Kисловодск;

The cable car ride up to Mount Maloe Sedlo in Kисловодск;

I've gotta say, the revamped Old Lake beach in Kисловодск is a real gem;

The Leonidovskaya staircase in Kисловодск is a masterpiece of architecture and nature;

The multimedia museum Center-Visit in Kисловодск is a must-see, even if you don't catch all the exhibits;

The Cascading Staircase in Kисловодск is one of the city's most iconic landmarks.