Saint Petersburg Toy Museum

In the three halls of this museum, you will see examples of folk toys from the 16th Century, as well as toys that were produced in the 20th Century in both Soviet Russia and abroad. Founded in 1997 as the first private museum in St Petersburg, it celebrates toys as a part of Russian culture. Toys were often considered a work of art and seen as an important part of a child’s moral and aesthetic education. The toys in this museum are exhibits, but they are also used in performances and lectures. You can see toys being made using traditional techniques in masterclasses, and kids (or childish adults!) can play with them. In the ever-growing permanent collection, you can see toys from Russia, Europe, China, Africa, and more, but you shouldn’t miss some of the rarer collections, such as the hand-made Christmas tree decorations of Toporina from the 1930s.