Modern Society through the Eyes of Vojta Náprstek
The National Technical Museum (NTM) commemorates the 200th anniversary of Vojta Náprstek’s birth with a small exhibition mapping Náprstek’s ideas about modern society in the second half of the 19th century.
On display are technical novelties that Vojta Náprstek began collecting during his visit to the World Exhibition in London in 1862, so that he could introduce them to Czech society as well as local manufacturers and craftsmen.
The exhibited objects come from the following areas: household management, including a section on gas cooking, which Náprstek strongly supported; aids and tools for trades; equipment for domestic plant cultivation and animal keeping; protective devices; models related to safety and firemen’s work; as well as interior elements and components. The second‑to‑last section is devoted to units of measurement and scientific and educational artifacts, while the final section is dedicated to travel equipment.
From Náprstek’s collection, which was transferred to NTM in 1943, items closely connected with everyday household life have so far been exhibited most frequently; now those tied to other technical fields and handicrafts are also receiving their moment in the spotlight.
The exhibition also acquaints visitors with Vojta Náprstek’s personality and family background, his travels and purchases that formed the basis for establishing the Czech Industrial Museum, and with the public presentations of the imported technical novelties that he organized, which enjoyed exceptional success among contemporary society.
The selection of items from Náprstek’s collection of technical household aids is being presented by NTM on a long‑term basis in the permanent exhibition Technology in the Household on the two floors below the location of the new exhibition.
Further items from the NTM collection documenting Vojta Náprstek’s activities supporting the emancipation and education of women through the modernization of the household will be on view in the exhibition Vojta Náprstek Reloaded at the National Museum’s Náprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures.
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