KGB Espionage Museum

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KGB Espionage Museum
KGB Espionage Museum 245 West 14th Street.jpg
KGB Espionage Museum is located in Manhattan
KGB Espionage Museum
Location within Manhattan
Former name
KGB Spy Museum
EstablishedJanuary 17, 2019 (2019-01-17)
Location245 West 14th St., New York, New York, United States
Coordinates40°44′14″N 73°59′51″W / 40.737358°N 73.997451°W / 40.737358; -73.997451Coordinates: 40°44′14″N 73°59′51″W / 40.737358°N 73.997451°W / 40.737358; -73.997451
TypeHistory Museum
Collection sizeOver 3,900 Objects
Websitehttps://kgbespionagemuseum.org/

The KGB Espionage Museum was a museum dedicated to the unbiased presentation of historical and contemporary KGB espionage equipment and tradecraft. The museum opened in the Chelsea/Greenwich Village area of New York City on 17 January 2019 and featured the world's largest collection of KGB-specific spy equipment.[1] The museum offered interactive exhibits and guided tours. The museum, however, is closing due to the impact of COVID-19, and its contents are to be auctioned.[2]

History and Formation[]

The museum in Manhattan was founded in 2019 by Lithuanian father and daughter team Julius Urbaitis and Agne Urbaityte. The collection began under private ownership by Mr. Urbaitis in Lithuania where their first museum opened in an old KGB bunker.[3] The majority of the collection has now been brought to the United States and was available for public view for the first time.

Permanent Collection[]

The KGB Espionage Museum was 4,000 sq. feet (370 sq. meters) and exhibited over 3900 objects. The collection consists of original pieces and two replicas. Prize objects include a lipstick gun known as the "Kiss of Death", a Fialka Machine (the Russian version of the Enigma Machine), and a suicide tooth filled with poison.[4][5]

Main Topics of the Exhibitions[]

The museum divided their collection into the following rough categories:

Interactive Exhibits[]

The KGB Espionage Museum offered several areas of interactivity for visitors such as:

  • A KGB Interrogation Chair
  • Morse Keys
  • Switchboards
  • KGB Chief's Desk
  • Robotic Arm
  • KGB Prison Bed
  • KGB Uniform Photo Booth

Tours[]

  • "Guided Tour": A guided experience[6]
  • "Dark Side of the KGB" Tour: A guided tour of the museum in the dark using soviet flashlights[7]
  • "Come Back in the USSR 1991" Tour: Experiential tour where the visitor dresses as a KGB cadet, learns how to put on a gas mask, and experiences a KGB interrogation[8]

References[]

  1. ^ "Educative experience - KGB Espionage Museum - Learning experiences". KGB Espionage Museum. Retrieved 2020-01-29.
  2. ^ Bahr, Sarah (October 28, 2020). "K.G.B. Museum Closes; Lipstick Gun and Other Spy Relics Go on Sale" – via NYTimes.com.
  3. ^ "New York's KGB museum offers Cold War nostalgia fix". Inquirer Lifestyle. 2019-02-03. Retrieved 2020-01-31.
  4. ^ Visontay, Michael (2019-07-31). "New York's new Cold War Espionage museum". Traveller. Retrieved 2020-01-29.
  5. ^ "KGB Espionage Museum - KGB Espionage Museum - Museum in NY". KGB Espionage Museum. Retrieved 2020-01-31.
  6. ^ Deb, Sopan (2019-01-21). "A Museum for K.G.B. Aficionados? Da!". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-01-29.
  7. ^ "Announcing Exclusive Mysterious Tour 'The Darkside of the KGB'". KGB Espionage Museum. 2020-01-13. Retrieved 2020-01-29.
  8. ^ "Announcing New Experiential Show 'Come Back in the USSR 1991'". KGB Espionage Museum. 2020-01-13. Retrieved 2020-01-29.

External links[]

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