Asienieboje - wargaming blog: museums

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28 września 2025

One Million Views! Some wonderful museums to explore.

While I was on holiday, something I had been anticipating for years finally happened: the visitor count on the blog surpassed one million views! This is another reason to celebrate, especially since we recently commemorated our 1,000th post. For that reason, this post will be a bit different - we'll catch up.

I promised you several reports from museum visits, but they never happened due to time constraints. It's time to change that. In today's post, I will recommend two museums that are long overdue, along with a report from my recent vacation to Florence, Italy.

The first stop is the Battle of Culloden Museum, located near Inverness, Scotland. This site is significant in British history, as it was here that the last battle on the island was fought, marking the end of the country’s civil wars. The museum is easily accessible from the city of Inverness, with a bus service from the city centre; however, I discovered that the bus does not operate on Sundays, so it's essential to plan accordingly. The museum also has a spacious parking lot, so parking should not be an issue.

The museum is relatively small but features an impressive collection of weapons, uniforms, and equipment from the period. It also showcases the results of archaeological excavations conducted at the battlefield. I was particularly impressed by the virtual presentation of the battle, which effectively illustrates how the events unfolded and the factors that contributed to the Jacobite defeat.

After visiting the museum, it's a good idea to take a walk around the battlefield itself. The first things you notice are the flagpoles—one red, marking the position of the government forces, and the other blue, indicating where the Jacobites were stationed. This battlefield is one of the best-preserved and best-presented sites I've ever encountered.

After visiting the museum, I suggest taking a 20-30 minute walk south of the battlefield to the Clava Cairns, which are well-preserved Neolithic tombs.

You can find my complete gallery at this link:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720329101936/

I recently discovered another museum located on the Spanish island of Mallorca. During my visit there last year, I decided to explore the Museu Històric Militar de Sant Carles. This museum is situated in Fort Saint Carles, at the southern edge of the port in Palma de Mallorca. It is easily accessible by city bus from the city centre, although it's important to note that the ticket price is higher than a regular city bus ticket. At that time, a one-way ticket cost €3 instead of the standard €2. Additionally, cash was required for bus fares, as card payments were not accepted, but this policy may change in the future.

During my visit to the museum, I found that admission was free, although donations were greatly appreciated. The museum features an intriguing collection of artillery spanning from the 19th century to the present day. I was particularly drawn to the coastal artillery from the late 19th century and the pieces from the Spanish Civil War. Inside the fort buildings, there is a substantial collection of small arms from around the world, and I was especially surprised to see one from the Mahdi Rebellion in Sudan. Additionally, visitors have the opportunity to take a virtual flight over the fortress, which adds to the experience. I highly recommend the museum as a fascinating and lesser-known escape from the beaches of Mallorca, especially since it tends to be less crowded than other attractions in the island's capital.

Gallery from the museum:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720329099100/

My last holiday was in Florence and Pisa, both of which are wonderful destinations. In Florence, you must visit the Uffizi Gallery and the Accademia, which I did, along with many other museums. I also climbed the cathedral's dome and its bell tower, which my fitness level still allows me to do. During my museum visits, I focused primarily on source material for my future projects, specifically the Italian Wars and seventeenth-century conflicts. I encourage you to check out my gallery on Flickr; it might provide you with some inspiration as well.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720329099400/

Florence is a truly beautiful city, but one place stands out as particularly special: the Stibbert Museum. This museum is home to the private collection of Frederick Stibbert, an English art collector and businessman. After his death, his entire collection was opened to the public.

Visiting this museum evoked a feeling in me similar to what I experienced at the Musée de l'Armée in Paris and the Bovington Tank Museum. I haven't felt such excitement in a long time. The museum features impressive collections of Oriental and Japanese weapons, as well as artefacts from the Italian Wars, the 17th-century wars, and the Napoleonic Wars. I highly recommend visiting this collection; it is truly remarkable.

You can reach the museum by bus from the city centre, but be prepared for a 20-minute uphill walk from the bus stop. It's worth the effort! You can find the full gallery from the museum in the link below:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720329099830/

Florence has a collection of toy soldiers that I didn’t get a chance to see during my visit. I plan to return to the city because some of the artworks were undergoing conservation at that time, so I was unable to see them. There’s definitely a possibility that I’ll visit again.

Dante Alighieri's dagger, used by him during the Battle of Campaldino (11 June 1289).

Our next stop was Pisa. We only had one day to explore this city, compared to six days in Florence, so we didn’t have time to see everything. However, we did visit the most significant site: the Square of Miracles, which features the famous Leaning Tower. I decided not to climb the tower this time, but the entire complex is definitely worth seeing. It includes the baptistery, cemetery, cathedral, and several additional museums. There are also stunning engravings, paintings, and historic Muslim flags on display. It truly is a marvel! As always, the gallery is below:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720329130334/

I made sure to set aside time to visit a specific museum in Pisa that I was eager to see: the Museo delle Navi Antiche di Pisa. This museum features the wreck of the Roman ship Alkedo, along with a replica of the ship. Additionally, it showcases Pisa's maritime history, highlighting its past as a bustling centre of maritime trade. The museum is located in converted stables, adding to its unique charm.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720329113052/

I will conclude this report here. Thank you once again for all your visits. Now, I need to catch up on your blogs, as I didn't have time during my holiday; we are back to regular blogging.

26 marca 2017

Musée de l'Armée, my second visit to the museum. Musée de l'Armée, moja druga wizyta w muzeum.

Hello, I'm back from my holiday. This time we have been in Paris again and I got the day for myself only. When you have such a day, in my case it is obligatory visit to the museum and when you are in Paris, it is obviously famous Musée de l'Armée. However this time do not expect a lot of pictures, like it was last year. No, this time it was visit for myself only. As last time I have not put an attention for the exhibitions, but tried to made as more pictures as I can. Now I could closely look at them, watch all video presentations etc.
Witajcie! Jestem z powrotem z wakacji. Tym razem był to ponownie Paryż i tym razem również miałem tam czas tylko dla siebie. W przypadku takiego dnia, obowiązkowym jest dla mnie wizyta w jakimś muzeum, a jeżeli to jest Paryż, to jest to oczywiście sławne Musée de l'Armée. Tym razem nie spodziewajcie się dużej ilości zdjęć, jak to było w zeszłym roku. Nie, tym razem to była wizyta tylko dla mnie. Tak jak poprzednim razem nie zwracałem zbyt dużej uwagi na wystawy, a jedynie starałem się zrobić jak najwięcej zdjęć. Tym razem mogłem przyjrzeć się bliżej eksponatom, obejrzeć wszystkie video prezentacje itp.

What a lovely start for the visiting the military museum, if you start it with a parade! Co za wyjątkowy wstęp do zwiedzania muzeum wojskowego, szczególnie gdy zaczyna go parada wojskowa!

Despite what I have just written above, there is something I wanna to share with you. It is the part of the exhibition of the museum about toy soldiers. This time, better prepared (more batteries for my camera), I managed to made the pictures of that impressive collection. It is not very common to have the museum, which told the history of our hobby. Here are some pictures from that collection, for more check my Flickr gallery (all links can be found at the bottom of that post).

Pomimo tego co napisałem powyżej, jest coś, czym chciałbym się z Wami podzielić. Jest to część ekspozycji muzeum poświęcona figurkom. Tym razem lepiej przygotowany (więcej baterii dla mojego aparatu), udało mi się zrobić kilka zdjęć tej imponującej kolekcji. Nie jest to rzecz ogólnie powszechna, posiadać muzeum poświęcone historii naszego hobby. Tutaj kilka zdjęć z tej kolekcji, po więcej zapraszam do mojej galerii na Flickr. (wszystkie linki znajdziecie u dołu tej relacji).

From other things, it is worth to mention, was my visit to the palace of the Versaile (such an amazing place) and specially the famous Hall of Mirrors, which looks very spectacular. Form the Paris's cemeteries I have visited the Montmartre Cemetery. The place where many famous Poles have been buried during the times of Great Polish Emigration (19th century). I also checked the progress of the restoration of the Hotel Lambert (very important place connected with Polish history of the 19th and 20th century), which are very advanced now. Anyway it was great time!
Z innych rzeczy, wartych wspomnienia, była moja wizyta w pałacu w Wersalu (niesamowite miejsce) ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem Sali Zwierciadlanej, która robi ogromne wrażenie. Z paryskich cmentarzy tym razem obejrzałem cmentarz Montmartre. Jest to miejsce pochówku wielu sławnych Polaków z okresu Wielkiej Emigracji (XIX wiek). Sprawdziłem również jak przebiega proces odnowy Hotelu Lambert (bardzo ważne miejsce dla polskiej historii XIX i XX wieku), które są już na bardzo zaawansowanym poziomie. To był naprawde bardzo dobrze spędzony czas!