Museum of Underwater Archaeology in Łeba - the winning project

The urban-architectural competition for the conceptual design of the Underwater Archaeology and Baltic Fisheries Museum in Łeba has been resolved. The facility will be the next, tenth branch of the National Maritime Museum in Gdańsk. The winner is Plus3Architekci Sp. z o.o. studio from Warsaw, which presented a proposal of a modern body, but one that perfectly fits both the seaside climate and the planned character of the institution.

-- Advertisement --

The Museum of Underwater Archaeology and Baltic Fishery will be built near the mouth of the Łeba River to the Baltic Sea. Earlier this river flows through the Łebsko lake, on the banks of which early medieval Slavic boats were discovered. – Łeba is an important tourist spot, so we are sure of the attendance during the tourist season, but also out of season. We want the facility to be open all year round: open to the needs of the inhabitants, the region, to serve the local community – explains the director of the National Maritime Museum in Gdańsk, Jerzy Litwin, PhD.

The design of the new Łeba branch of the NMM is a proposal for a homogenous mass, interestingly open towards the promenade and the harbour channel. The dynamic form evokes clear associations with the action of the wind. The curve of the louvre is the dominant feature of the front elevation and at the same time an invitation to enter the building. The use of vertical elements in the form of ropes complements and emphasises the nautological character of the new branch of the NMM.

“Consistent, clear in perception multifaceted maritime inspirations and connotations, interestingly presented on graphic boards and in the descriptive part, contributed to generating a consistent and clear formal idea, opening the way to the realisation of this project as a museum – the icon of the city of Łeba,” reads the justification of the jury.

The new museum will occupy several halls, in one of which it is planned to arrange Slavic boats from the time of the Vikings, as well as the boatbuilding art of the time. Other halls will be dedicated to objects excavated during underwater archaeological research. Part of the exhibition will also be devoted to sea fishing and rescue operations.

European museums presenting the culture of the Vikings enjoy great popularity among visitors and this bodes well for the new facility – emphasises Director Jerzy Litwin – We would like it to be possible, following the example of the Viking Boat Museum in Oslo or Roskilde, to present some interesting vessels built by Slavs and thus show the maritime heritage of the people who were both partners and rivals of the Scandinavians in the 10th and 12th centuries. In our rich collections we have Slavic boat wrecks discovered in Orunia near Gdańsk, in the waters of the Bay of Puck and from Lake Łebsko. Thanks to the new exhibition space, we will be able to freely present them to visitors,” adds Director Jerzy Litwin.

The Warsaw office of Plus3 Architekci has been operating since 1999. The studio has completed many successful projects, mainly residential buildings in the capital city. One of the most interesting recent projects is a Protestant chapel in Białołęka.

Source: nnm.pl