There are more than two hundred museums of all different kinds in Latvia.The first one was founded in 1773; the exhibits were part of a private collection assembled by a Riga physician Nikolaus von Himsel. Von Himsel’s collection later formed the main body of the holdings of several museums — the Museum of Natural History, the Riga Picture Gallery, the City Museum of Art. Similar processes were at work on all-Latvia level and in 1818 the Courland Society of Art and Letters established the Museum of the Courland Province.There are two urges genetically encoded in every Latvian that are of help when founding a museum. First, we never throw away anything ― just in case it comes in handy. Also, any self-respecting Latvian would always hold on to old things and store them in the attic. And quite right, too. In this manner we have assembled and preserved for museums a collection of items from at least the last two hundred years that separate us from serfdomMuseums of cultural history ― we seem to have one for each town, district and specific branch of the science of history! At least once a year whole familiesset out for Riga to visit the Latvian Ethnographic Open Air Museum (founded in 1924), one of the largest open air museums in the Baltics. And it's also the most-visited museum in Latvia.

There are more than fifty local history museums in Latvia and ten local natural history, agriculture, maritime and fishery museums. Museum fans can also tour commemorative museums ― we honour the contribution of our writers and cultural activists by preserving their life stories and work for posterity. The locations of our museums are the regional cultural centres ― the Maritime Open Air Museum is in Ventspils, there is the Āraiši Lake Castle, the various museums in the Piebalga district, Kolnasāta and pottery kilns in Latgale. Among tourists, the most popular of the Riga museums are the Occupation Museum, the Latvian Military History Museum, the Latvian National Art Museum, the Riga Museum of History and Navigation and the Motor Museum; the museum dedicated to Baron von Münchausen, the greatest liar in the world, is also a favourite ― it's in Dunte.

The Rundāle Castle (designed by architect Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli) is the most outstanding monument of Baroque and Rococo art; the castle, whose construction began in 1736, was the summer residence of Ernst Johann von Biron, the Duke of Courland. The castle was badly damaged during both world wars, pillaged, used as stables, a barn and a storehouse; restoration has been going on since 1972 and for what has been accomplished we have to thank the true fanatic’s work done by Imants Lancmanis, the Intendant of the castle, and a group of like-minded co-workers. Since 1920 the castle is the property of the Latvian state.