Russia's remarkable scientific achievements are on display in the Polytechnical Museum, which dates back to the 19 th century and contains more than 160,000 exhibits.
Anyone with an interest in scientific inventions and creations will find this museum a fascinating visit, even if it's only to wonder at the alternative Russian version of who invented what - the museum makes claims, for example, on Russians devising radio and television before Marconi and Logie Baird put their ideas into practice.
The museum is also very old-fashioned but its stuffiness is about to be given a modern makeover, thanks to a £170million refurbishment programme that's expected to be complete in 2016 and will transform both the exhibit space and the visitor experience.
In the meantime, however, the museum is still worth a visit to see up close the technological revolution and its advances, conceived in Russian and around the world.
Tsar Alexander II ordered that a Museum of Applied Sciences be created in Moscow in 1872 and it was originally conceived as a centre for research and education. Work began on the building, designed in Russian 19 th century style, in 1877 and it was first opened to the public in 1907.
Today the Polytechnical Museum is a major centre of scientific, cultural and social life in the city - in 1991, it was declared one of Russia's valued cultural assets and its setting, within walking distance of the Kremlin and bang in the centre of Moscow, makes it one of the most accessible attractions.
This enormous museum is split into different departments and scientific categories within 65 different halls. With an enormous amount of artefacts and original items to see - latest estimates suggest almost 170,000 - those with an interest in science and technology may find one visit isn't enough.
In the automobile transport section are examples of Russian cars, including a Russo-Balt K12/20 and a GAZ-M20 Pobeda.
A scale model of the laboratory where the 18 th century Russian physicist, chemist, astronomer and poet Mikhail Lomonosov carried out decades of experiments can be viewed, along with Dmitri Mendeleev's original special periodic table of the elements.
There are Soviet versions of Sony Walkmans and Yamaha keyboards in the radio electronics and communications department, along with early electric lights and an early solar microscope and a seismograph.
Computers from the 1950s, including the very first Apple Mac, can be seen, and there also are models of drilling equipment and nuclear power stations that demonstrate Soviet ingenuity and design.
The exhibition also traces the worldwide development of such commonplace and now vital objects such as light bulbs and clocks with some incredible antique and original versions. There are original Thomas Edison photographs, Zenit cameras and Pathé film projectors to marvel over, too.
The Polytechnical Museum's special place in Russian hearts and minds is beyond question. And any visitor who wanders through its enormous halls, taking in an incredible amount of information, can only marvel at the imagination and ingenuity of the inventors who helped change the world forever.
