Muzeum Farmacji im. mgr Antoniny Leśniewskiej

What to Expect

The Museum of Pharmacy is the kind of place most visitors walk right past on their way to the Royal Castle. That is a mistake. Tucked into the ground floor of a historic tenement at Piwna 31/33 — a building once home to the architect Tylman van Gameren — this compact museum punches well above its weight. It is a branch of the Museum of Warsaw, and in 2019 it earned a nomination for the prestigious European Museum of the Year Award. Three small rooms. Over 2,500 artifacts. A story worth your time.

The core exhibition, “Res pharmaceuticae,” reveals the secrets behind making medicines, poisons, and drugs. The first room presents a faithfully reconstructed interwar pharmacy from the town of Wolomin — original cash register, apothecary scales, and the “receptura” (compounding bench) where pharmacists mixed prescriptions by hand. The pharmacy furniture dates from the 18th-19th centuries, and the craftsmanship alone is worth a long look.

The second room is a cabinet of curiosities for the medically inclined: porcelain, glass, and crystal vessels in every shape and colour, arranged by therapeutic purpose. The highlight — containers made from uranium glass that glow green when the lights go off. The third room takes a sharp turn into the unexpected with a collection of Japanese Kampo traveling medicine kits, complete with raw materials like silkworms, cicadas, and seahorses.

Budget about an hour. The museum library holds 2,600 publications for anyone wanting to go deeper. This is a jewel-box museum — small, dense, and rewarding.

Tips

• Free on Thursdays. The museum rarely draws crowds even on free days, so you will likely have the place to yourself.
• Labels in Polish and English. No audio guide, but the exhibition is small enough that wall texts are sufficient.
• Family ticket (24 PLN) covers up to 2 adults and 1-6 children. Good value for an Old Town attraction.
• Last entry 30 minutes before closing.
• The exhibition is sensory-friendly — no bright lights or loud sounds. A welcome refuge if you are burning out on crowded tourist spots.
• Wheelchair access: a ramp can be installed at the entrance on request. Strollers are impractical inside — the rooms are narrow.

Getting There

Tram: Stare Miasto stop — lines 13, 20, 23, 26. A short walk down Piwna Street to the museum.

Bus: Plac Zamkowy stop — lines 125, 170, 190, 307, 512. From there, 3-4 minutes on foot into the Old Town.

Metro: Ratusz Arsenal station (M1 line) — roughly a 10-12 minute walk through Podwale and Piwna streets. The metro does not reach the Old Town directly, but it is the fastest option if you are coming from farther out.

On foot: If you are already in the Old Town — and you probably are — it is a 2-minute walk from the Market Square. Piwna Street runs parallel to Swietojanska, branching off near the Royal Castle.

Nearby Museums

Background

The museum was founded on 26 January 1985, driven by Kazimierz Radecki, president of the Warsaw branch of the Polish Pharmaceutical Society, with backing from the CEFARM pharmaceutical supply company. It moved twice before landing at its current Old Town address in April 2006 — previous homes included Marszalkowska 72 (1985) and Skierniewicka 16/20 (1996).

The museum’s patron, Antonina Lesniewska (1866-1937), was the first Polish woman to earn a Master of Pharmacy degree. In 1933, she opened a pharmacy at Marszalkowska 72 that employed exclusively women — the first such establishment in the world. In a profession that had been male-only for centuries, this was not a footnote. It was a declaration.

Since 2002, the museum has operated as a branch of the Museum of Warsaw. The collection spans original interwar pharmacy equipment, 17th-19th century furniture, surgical and dental instruments, and a notable pharmacy clock from 1910. A complete set of 18th-19th century pharmacy furnishings acquired in 2011 rounds out the holdings. The 2019 nomination for the European Museum of the Year Award confirmed what regulars already knew — size is not everything.