Basilian Fathers Museum

• Religieux

The Basilian Fathers Museum was founded in the 1950s, but its roots go back much further—to a French Canadian priest named Father Josaphat Jean.
In 1910 Father Jean went to Ukraine to study the Ukrainian language and the Eastern rite. Inspired by Metropolitan Andrei Sheptytskyi, the charismatic founder of the National Museum in L’viv, Father Jean began to collect a wide variety of religious and ethnographic artifacts. These eventually found a home at the museum in Mundare.
When contacts with Ukraine were cut off by the Communist regime in the 1940s, the Basilian Fathers recognized the need to preserve the cultural as well as the religious heritage of Ukrainians in Canada.
In 1953 the Basilians founded a Ukrainian museum in the town of Mundare. Here, Father Jean’s valuable lifetime collection of religious artifacts found a permanent home alongside unique collections of Ukrainian Easter eggs, embroidery, weaving, pioneer tools and folk artifacts.
The museum also houses a private library collection and archives (not open to the public).
In 1991 the museum’s collections were moved to the current museum building—a beautiful new structure which combines elements of Ukrainian folk architecture and Byzantine church style. The new museum took the name Basilian Fathers Museum.

The museum’s collection of Canadian and Ukrainian religious and folk artifacts was assembled by Father Josaphat Jean and other Basilians or donated by local residents. Some of the artifacts represent early pioneer life in Canada. Others date as far back as the 15th century.
Folk Collections
The Ukrainian settlers who made Canada their home brought a rich legacy of ritual, custom, folklore, song and art. The museum houses fine examples of the material culture of these brave pioneers, including:

• the tools they used to make a living and manage their households
• beadwork, embroidery and handwoven clothing and linens
• handcrafted furnishings
• exquisite Ukrainian Easter eggs (pysanky)
Religious Collections
The museum houses a valuable collection of old liturgical books, documents, chalices, crucifixes, church furnishings, vestments and icons. The beginnings of this collection date to 1910, when Father Jean first visited Ukraine. Inspired by the rich and colourful history of this land, Father Jean became a collector of Ukrainian treasures.

Museum Hours of Operation - Open Year Round
Monday to Friday: 10 am - 4 pm
Weekends only in July & August: 1 - 5 pm Note Library and Archives access may not be permitted. Contact before going.