Kerch Museum of Antiquities was opened for visiting on June 2(14),1826 and it is one of the oldest museums in the country. The building was designed by the architect J. Torichelly, and was erected on Mount Mithridates. The building was a copy of Hephaestus Temple in Athens. During the Crimean War, the museum was totally robbed. In 1860, the building became the property of Alexander Nevsky’s Orthodox Temple. After this time, the museum’s collection was displayed in different private residences.
In 1922, the museum’s collections found their permanent address in a residence on Sverdlov Street, and the museum returned to its former building on Mitridates Mount. Since 1931, for more than half-a-century period of time, several exhibitions of the museum occupied the re-equipped rooms of its neighbouring church. The museum is a part of Kerch Historical and Cultural Preserve. The collection of its archaeological finds of ancient period and the medieval epoch is the largest in the Crimea. The museum plays a significant role in studying the history and culture of Bosporus and the history of Kerch during the 18-20th centuries.
