We in the West have gotten used to the idea that farmhouses are physically separate from the "barn", where livestock and grain are kept. This was not the case for traditional village houses in Ukraine.

This 200+ year old textile fragment shows the ancient origins of a common Ukrainian embroidery pattern.

By far the oldest item in our permanent collection is this Kyivan Rus' cross-enkolpion.

In the 1930s, the anti-religious zeal of the Communist government resulted in the destruction of architectural masterpieces. Today, it is capitalist development.

One of the oldest written records in our collections is this legal document from 1731. It is written in Polish (not surprisingly, since much of Ukraine was part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonweath at the time), and concerns the raising of funds for the monastery in Mezhyrichia, Ukraine.

The birds on this pysanka (Ukrainian decorated Easter egg) are strong and serious animals, not "tweety-birds" or baby chicks. They have no-nonsense beaks and big claws. In fact, they're almost scary-looking.

A Ukrainian-American Girl Scout in 1925.

Narbut played a major role in the independent Ukrainian nation of 1917-1920: he designed the new country's stamps and paper money, as well as this hand-lettered certificate.

January 19th is the Eastern Christian feast day of the Theophany (according to the Julian Calender). In Ukraine, it was traditionally celebrated by a procession from the church to a river or stream, where a hole would be cut through the ice and the water would be blessed. Wherever they were in the world, Ukrainians tried to maintain this tradition, even in the extreme conditions of the post-WWII refugee camps.