Slovenski šolski muzej/Slovenian School Museum

Historical Significance of the Slovenian School Museum The Slovenian School Museum in Ljubljana, founded in 1898, is the oldest specialized museum in Slovenia focusing on a specific sphere of man´s activities.

Founded in 1898 The museum was opened due largely to teachers’ increasing awareness of their profession and national background. The idea originally came from Jacob Dimnik, a primary school teacher from Ljubljana, who endeavored to establish an institution presenting the history of schools and the work of teachers in Slovenia. On the 50th anniversary of Emperor Franz Joseph´s reign, 2 August 1898, the Slovenian Teachers´ Association held its annual general meeting where they opened a teaching aids exhibition and established a Slovenian school museum. Because the museum depended on teachers´ organizations for financial support and there was no regular funding for its maintenance, its core activities were hindered, and the museum had to move across Ljubljana several times. Its last seat was at the Učiteljska tiskarna printing house, where it was dissolved in 1912.

Re-established in 1938 After the First World War, the progress of education called for the museum´s re-opening with the idea that the museum should primarily collect documents providing a detailed picture on the state of schools and education. Restoration, however, was not yet to come about. Only in the 1930s was the idea revived by Dr. Karel Ozvald and encouraged by Rudolf Kobilica, head of an experimental school in Ljubljana. Upon his proposal, the educational department of the then-banate issued a special decree on 27 May 1938, establishing a museum of Slovenian education.

Since then, the museum´s activities as a free-standing institution have never been interrupted. 

...more on https://solskimuzej.si/en/history-of-the-museum/