Savka House
Savka House is a museum of Ukrainian rural life, located from Kyiv at Novi Petrivtsi village. The museum features an old Ukrainian house made of clay covered with straw. Highlights of Savka House include numerous ancient household items: tiny glass bottles, ancient shoes with wooden nails which “cost like a cow”, various pots, wooden wheels, a large wooden bowl for making bread. In the yard there is a real smithy, a boots workshop, a pottery, three old bee hives, a kitchen garden and an old well.
The museum's working hours are on weekends, preliminary arrangement is necessary. The excursion program includes Ukrainian traditional performance, tales on Ukrainian customs and Ukrainian dinner.
History
Savka House was founded in 2002 by folklorist Fyodor Shklyarov, who converted his family homestead into an open-air ethnographic museum. He began collecting traditional household items, tools, furniture, and clothing from nearby villages and farms. Initially, the museum attracted visitors from the surrounding region, but as interest in ethno-tourism increased in Belarus, it began to receive school excursions, cultural tours, and international visitors.
Cultural significance
The museum hosts various cultural events, including folk music performances, harvest-related celebrations, and workshops on traditional crafts and cuisine. Visitors can engage in activities such as baking bread in a wood-fired oven, weaving on traditional looms, and forging simple tools under the guidance of local artisans.
Community engagement
Savka House collaborates with schools and cultural institutions to deliver educational programmes on folklore, local dialects, and seasonal customs. The museum organises annual events such as Maslenitsa, Kupala Night, and carol singing during the winter season. These efforts are aimed at involving younger generations and supporting the transmission of regional traditions. The initiative has also created supplementary employment opportunities for local craftspeople and tour guides.