Soil Museum – Soil Education Centre
al. 29 Listopada 46/017
31-425 Kraków
Tel. (12) 662 53 91
info@muzeumgleb.pl or
piotr.pacanowski@urk.edu.pl
www.muzeumgleb.pl
Tours available by appointment only. Museum lessons can be organized for groups (fees apply). Self-guided visits
are free of charge and are available at fixed times. Please see the website for up to date information.
Curator: Piotr Pacanowski PhD
The Soil Museum – Soil Education Centre at the University of Agriculture in Kraków is the only such museum in Poland and one of the few museums worldwide devoted to soils. It was established in 2012 on the initiative of Prof. Stanisław Brożek. The museum is a part of the Faculty of Forestry and encompasses 150 sq. metres; it is supervised by one member of staff who also acts as an educator. The Soil Museum has a display of 76 cross sections (vertical slices) of soils from diverse areas across Europe and the USA. The cross sections are presented in the form of authentic soil monoliths measuring 35 x 120 cm or 20 x 100 cm, preserved using a glue-based technique on a real-life 1:1 scale. All the soil monoliths were made in the years 2010–2011 by a team supervised by Prof. Stanisław Brożek. The museum provides people with an opportunity to expand their knowledge about the function and protection of soil in diverse climatic conditions across Europe and its impact on shaping the landscape, and on mankind in general. The museum also houses an exhibition of rocks and minerals. The main exhibition, Gleba w środowisku przyrodniczym i krajobrazach Europy (Soil in the natural environment and landscapes of Europe), presents 76 authentic soil cross sections in 11 different climatic zones across Europe. They are arranged from North to South: the tundra (Norway), taiga (Finland), temperate climatic zone (Poland), the Puszta (Hungary), the Mediterranean (Italy); and from West to East: the Atlantic
zone (France and Germany), temperate climatic zone (Poland), the steppe zone (Ukraine and Russia) and the semi-desert zone (Russia). Each of the soil cross sections is accompanied by photographs of the area and concise descriptions. Furthermore, each zone has a dedicated multimedia centre with abundant documentation, descriptions, photographs and films. Full information on the exhibits is available in a book which also serves as a guide: Gleby w środowisku przyrodniczym i krajobrazach Europy (Soil in the natural environment and landscapes of Europe), edited by Stanisław Brożek, published by the University’s Publishing House.
Piotr Pacanowski PhD
