Ventspils Museum has implemented the project “Sea, Port, City: Ventspils 13th–19th Centuries.”
28.08.2026 - 10:17
Ventspils Museum has implemented the project “Sea, Port, City: Ventspils 13th–19th centuries.”, the aim of which is to popularize Latvia's oldest city on the coast of the Great Sea, emphasize the mutual connection between the sea, port, and Ventspils, and tell an engaging story about the coastal cultural and historical heritage in Ventspils and its surroundings.
The history of Ventspils is inseparable from the Baltic Sea and the port. Since the Middle Ages, its location at the mouth of the Venta River has determined the growth of the city, its economic life, the occupation of its inhabitants and its connections with other countries of the Baltic Sea region. The port was not only a place for the circulation and trade of goods, but also a significant factor in the spatial, economic and social development of the city.
The exhibition created as part of the project "Sea, Port, City: Ventspils 13th-19th centuries" will allow this multi-layered historical story to be revealed more broadly, linking the evidence of the museum's collection, archaeological and historical sources with modern information presentation solutions. The project aims to help visitors see Ventspils not only as a city by the sea, but as a place whose development has been shaped for centuries by sea routes, a port, trade and people.
The exhibition created as part of the project "Sea, Port, City: Ventspils 13th-19th centuries" will allow this multi-layered historical story to be revealed more broadly, linking the evidence of the museum's collection, archaeological and historical sources with modern information presentation solutions. The project aims to help visitors see Ventspils not only as a city by the sea, but as a place whose development has been shaped for centuries by sea routes, a port, trade and people.
The exhibition depicts the period from the 13th to the 19th century - a time when Ventspils' identity as a port city was formed and strengthened. Historical objects and documents allow us to trace changes in shipping and trade, the city's economic life and the everyday lives of its residents, while simultaneously revealing Ventspils' connection to broader political and economic processes in the Baltic Sea region.
As part of the project, conservation restoration works were carried out on the tower of the Ventspils Livonian Order Castle, ensuring the preservation of the significant cultural and historical heritage and the protection of its authentic values.
The accompanying material for the exhibition has also been created - a guidebook "Sailing around the Port of Ventspils", which helps to navigate the exhibition and learn about the history of the port of Ventspils and the city in an exciting way that is understandable even to the youngest visitors. The guidebook invites you to go on a joint exploratory "sailing" through the exhibition, paying attention to the most important exhibits, historical events and stories.
The implementation of the project provides an opportunity to make the museum's historical content more accessible to various groups of society, including families with children, students, city residents and guests. Modern interpretation of cultural heritage helps not only to preserve historical memory, but also to create an understanding of how past processes have influenced the urban environment and identity of modern Ventspils.
"Ventspils has grown together with its port and the sea. In this project, we want to show that the history of the city is not a series of isolated events - it is a story about people, goods, ships, ideas and connections that have crossed Ventspils over the centuries and shaped the city as we know it today," emphasizes the Ventspils Museum.
The implementation of the project complements the Ventspils Museum's offer with a high-quality and sustainable interpretation of history, allowing museum visitors to rediscover Ventspils as a a meeting point between the sea, port and city.
The exhibition was created by SIA "Aģentūra Raugs" in collaboration with Ventspils Museum specialists. The conservation restoration of the castle tower, in accordance with the recommendations developed by architect Pēteris Blūms (SIA "Konvents"), was carried out by SIA "Marbella RN Group".The total cost of the project is 495,496 euros, including 323,162 euros in EU funding.
Project "Sea, port, city: Ventspils 13th-19th centuries." (No. 24-08-UL01-U31421.104-000001) is implemented within the framework of the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EJAF) Latvian Operational Programme for Fisheries Development 2023-2027. within the framework of the measure "Implementation of Community-led Local Development Strategies", in accordance with the local development strategy of the association "Ziemeļkurzeme Business Association".
The new exhibition is available to visitors from September 3rd.
