History:
Gjirokastër Ethnographic Museum is a museum in western Gjirokastër, Albania. The museum, constructed in 1966, is built on the site of communist leader Enver Hoxha‘s birth home and offers an insight into the traditional lifestyle of the town. From 1966 to 1991, the building served as the Anti-Fascist Museum, but after the fall of socialism in Albania it was converted to house cultural artefacts and traditional homewares. The museum is open year-round to visitors
Description:
One street away stands the famous childhood home of Enver Hoxha, the former Communist leader of the country for more than fifty years. Built in the 19th century, the three-story building is located in the famed “Palorto” neighborhood. Following its destruction in an accidental fire, the house remained in ruins for several decades until, in 1967, it was rebuilt to become the Museum of the National Liberation War. The reconstruction equipped the house with the characteristics of a typical Gjirokastra home and, in 1991, it was turned into an Ethnographic Museum. Hoxha lived only a few years of his life in this house, but his name seems to imbue this house with a certain grandeur and mystery.
Open:
April to September 08:00 to 12:00 and 16:00 to 19:00 daily
October to March 08:00 to 16:00 Wednesday to Sunday (closed Monday and Tuesday)
