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Slovene Ethnographic Museum
Slovenski etnografski muzej (SEM)
Street address: Metelkova 2, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Telephone: 386 (0) 1 300 8700
Fax: 386 (0) 1 300 8736
E-mail: etnomuz@etno-muzej.si
Website: http://www.etno-muzej.si
Proprietor: Ministry of Culture
Contact: Bojana Rogelj Škafar Director
Telephone: 386 (0) 1 300 8714
E-mail: bojana.rogelj@etno-muzej.si
Contact: Nina Zdravič Polič Director Assistant
Telephone: 386 (0) 1 300 8717
E-mail: nina.zdravic@etno-muzej.si
Contact: Mojca Račič Librarian
Telephone: 386 (0) 1 300 8717
Opening hours: Museum: 10am-6pm Tue-Sun, closed Mon
 The origins of the Slovene Ethnographic Museum (SEM) may be traced back to the ethnographic collections of the Carniolian Museum, established in 1821, although its immediate precursor was the Royal Ethnographic Museum, founded in 1923. In 1997 the Museum moved to its current location, an ex-barracks at Metelkova, to which an additional modern museum building was added in 2004.The SEM’s mission is to give present and future generations an insight into the traditional and contemporary culture of Slovenes living on the territory of Slovenia and in nearby countries (Italy, Austria and Hungary) and of Slovene immigrants and ethnic groups living in Slovenia. It also aims to foster knowledge about non-European cultures (American, African, Asian, Australian & Oceanian Collections). The museum houses more than 40,000 objects in several collections: Rural Economy; Dwelling Culture; Costumes and Textiles; Social Culture and Customs; Folk Art; and Art Sources and Ethnic Minorities. The Documentation and Restoration Department and the Library are important information centres. The museum publishes the Etnolog (Ethnologist) Journal, the SEMnovice newsletter and a variety of other works, including at least one study work each year dealing with museum collections.
The museum stages between three and eight guest exhibitions each year and runs an active education programme.
 Its premises with a reading room are open to the public for educational purposes. The Museum’s Education Department organises guided tours, thematic workshops for children and adults and a range of other educational events such as video screenings, lectures and monthly museum workshops.The SEM staged between three and eight guest exhibitions each year, from Belgium, Poland, Macedonia, the Czech Republic, China, Japan, Italy and Bulgaria, and since 1995 the museum has toured its six exhibitions (for example, 'Love is in the air: Love gifts in Slovene traditional culture' toured to Finland and Hungary). Some foreign museums have also borrowed objects (toys, old skis) from the SEM. The museum has also co-operated in a number of research projects, including in 1998 in the Raphael project 'Linen on Net: The Common Roots of European Linen Patterns', and in 1999-2001 the Virtual European Textile Heritage Site Itineraries, a three-year Raphael project with partners in the UK, Finland, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Austria and Russia.
Since 1999 the SEM has been a 'client' in the MUSEUMS programme Energy Efficiency and Sustainability in Retrofitted and New Museum Buildings (Framework 5). It has also co-operated in the MATRA programme and hosted an intern from Russia.
Exchange of international experts and studies abroad is common. Since 1997 the museum has organised and hosted several conferences: in 1998 a symposium on 'Ethnological and Anthropological Approaches to the Study of Death', and in 2000 a conference on 'Food and Celebration, from Fasting to Feasting', the first meeting of Music and Minorities group and a conference of three ICOM committees: CIMUSET, ICTOP, MPT.
The Slovene Ethnographic Museum is a member of the Network of European Ethnographic Museums (NET) and since 2002 it has also been a member of the Association of European Migration Institutions (AEMI), itself also a member of ICOM and ICOM-CIDOC.
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