Visiting Prilep’s tobacco museum

Prilep has long been a centre for production of tobacco and tobacco related products, thus it only makes sense for it to be the home of a tobacco museum.

On the outskirts of Prilep you can find the Tobacco Museum. Established in 1973, but home to an assortment of articles whose collection started since the end of World War II. It is owned by the Tobacco Institute and houses around 1700 articles.

The museum aims to provide an assortment of knowledge on tobacco. It is divided between the themes of "enjoyment of tobacco", "production, advertising and current operation of the tobacco industry", "traditional production of tobacco" and art motives with tobacco as the theme. Though visitors shouldn't expect the museum to provide a wealth of knowledge on the production of tobacco and tobacco related products; the museum seems to be designed from the perspective of a consumer.

When visiting the museum you will be able to get a great deal of stories on how a pipe was used by a famous politician or how the cigarette case for spanish and french soldiers differed, but there's is not that much on Prilep. There are plenty of brands that are made in Prilep present and depictions of the planting of tobacco in the past. Nonetheless, it feels like a missed opportunity for there to be a lack of info regarding Prilep specifically when it's a small city with an ample tradition of tobacco production.

There are quite a number of things to see in the Museum. Visitors will see pipes, chibouks, tobacco boxes, cigarette cases, snuffboxes, dose for tobacco, ashtrays, hookah, water pipes for tobacco and opium, cleaners and chargers for pipes, port cigarettes, kamishi, tobacco cutters, crushers for snuff (mortars), trimming and slicing gadgetry, moulds and other tools for making pipes, holders (holders for cigarettes and matches), boxes for tobacco, cigarettes and matches, serving tray for cigarettes, devices for lighting of pipes, chilami for hashish, lighters, boxes for rolling cigarettes, pokers.

There is also a good student discount available for visitors.

Tomas R.