Lviv Pharmacy Museum

The Pharmacy Museum in Lviv is a state museum dedicated to the history of pharmacy. It is located in the city center on Rynok Square at Drukarska Street 2. The museum occupies a functioning pharmacy that has operated continuously since 1735, making it the oldest surviving pharmacy in Ukraine. It includes 16 halls with exhibitions illustrating the pharmaceutical trade and everyday life of the 18th and 19th centuries.

The original pharmacy, named “Under the Black Eagle,” was founded by the military pharmacist Natorp in a Renaissance-era townhouse constructed in the 16th–17th centuries. Ownership changed several times until the museum was established in 1966. Today, the pharmacy continues to sell medicinal products prepared according to historical recipes, alongside modern remedies and souvenirs.

Exhibition halls

• Main trading hall: Features wooden furniture, antique medical scales, and traditional pharmacy utensils. An adjoining office once served the pharmacy’s owner.
• Storage hall: Displays pharmaceutical equipment and containers used for storing prepared medicines.
• Laboratory: Recreates the environment where raw materials were processed into medical preparations.
• Alchemist’s laboratory and library: A reconstructed alchemical workshop based on historical documents, along with a collection of rare books.
• Cellar and courtyard: Exhibitions illustrating aspects of urban life in the 16th–18th centuries.

The museum visit typically takes 20–30 minutes. An entrance fee is required.

Additional Information

The Pharmacy Museum combines its function as a cultural and educational institution with that of an active pharmacy. Its dual role illustrates the continuity of pharmaceutical practice in Lviv across centuries. The museum is considered one of the distinctive attractions of the city due to its central location, preserved historical interiors, and integration of museum and commercial functions.