How to Wake a Sleeping Dragon: Anika and Her Father Milan Are Bringing Alchemy to Life in Radovljica
If you ever find yourself in Radovljica, there is one museum you simply shouldn’t miss. It will undoubtedly charm you – and perhaps even cast a little spell on you.
The Pharmacy and Alchemy Museum is located on Linhart Square, close to the Museum of Apiculture and the Šivec House, in what was once a monastery. It is difficult to imagine a more fitting setting for the remarkable collections hidden within its walls.
Welcome to the Pharmacy and Alchemy Museum in Radovljica!
Four decades of collecting
The museum takes visitors back to a time when pharmacy relied largely on nature – herbs, minerals and medicines prepared by hand. At the entrance, I am greeted by Anika Plešec. When she notices my surprise at the sheer size of the museum, she smiles and tells me that this is a common reaction among visitors.
In fact, she adds, they could easily use even more space to display everything. Her father, Milan Plešec, a pharmacist by profession, devoted 40 years of his life to building the collection.
Their collection is really big.
Milan acquired exhibits from collectors abroad, from Spain all the way to Japan, as well as at auctions and various fairs. Anika herself brought back many fascinating objects from her travels through Central America.
Over the decades, they have amassed a true pharmaceutical treasure trove: scales, mortars and pestles, ceramic vessels, chests, books, powders, herbs – and much more.
This is a very unique museum.
Priceless collections and unique experiences
The museum offers a remarkably detailed journey through two thousand years of pharmaceutical history. Its collections reach all the way back to the beginnings of folk medicine and mystical healing, while another section explores the history of cosmetics. An entire room in the basement is devoted to the mysterious world of alchemy.
On the ground floor, there is also a museum shop where visitors can find fragrant natural ointments and traditional herbal preparations.
But the museum is much more than a collection of carefully arranged exhibits. It also offers visitors an interactive experience. They can discover – and even mix – preparations inspired by ancient remedies and learn more about the plants that were once used to treat various ailments.
And who catalogued, labelled and carefully arranged the hundreds of objects displayed throughout the museum?
Anika tells me that she and her father did it all themselves. Milan even built most of the display cases in which the precious objects are exhibited.
How do you wake a sleeping dragon?
Anika then leads me to the Dragon Spring.
“Do you think you could wake our sleeping dragons?” she asks playfully.
Dragons, she explains to my visibly intrigued journalistic eyes, symbolise the ancient masters of the Earth, guardians of earthly treasures and keepers of ancient wisdom.
As she speaks, she moves her hands around a copper vessel filled with water.
Before long, the water begins to bubble.
“From an alchemical perspective, our task is to find our own dragon and tame it – to master the mysterious power within us and discover our inner treasure: a source of wisdom, knowledge, nobility and eternal youth,” Anika explains.
The sound of bubbling water – or perhaps awakening dragons – is soon drowned out by children’s voices.
Children are particularly fond of the museum, where they can step into a world of imagination and magic. Those over the age of nine can even take part in wizarding workshops and schools, where they test their magical abilities and use herbs to create their own mixtures and potions.
The elixir of life is within us
Although the chemical practices of alchemy are today regarded as important precursors to modern chemistry, alchemy was once a mysterious and mystical pursuit that fascinated and intrigued generations of scholars.
European alchemists searched for the legendary Philosopher’s Stone and the Elixir of Life. It is therefore hardly surprising that the museum’s alchemy section, steeped in mystery, is one of the most captivating parts of the visit.
Alchemists were enigmatic scholars who believed that, through special processes, ordinary metals could be transformed into gold and that it might even be possible to create a potion capable of granting immortality.
But did they ever find it?
Not literally. Yet their search for the mythical Elixir of Life was about more than physical immortality. The elixir became a symbol of spiritual transformation, the pursuit of wisdom and the eternal youth of the spirit. Ancient alchemists believed that true immortality could be achieved through understanding the laws of nature, living in harmony with the world and pursuing personal growth.
Their work can therefore be understood not simply as a quest for an impossible destination, but as a journey towards inner transformation.
The museum in Radovljica displays precious manuscripts and ancient books written by alchemists, offering a glimpse into their ambitions and visions.
Science, mysticism and philosophy often intertwine on their pages, revealing the extraordinary complexity of alchemical thought. Each document offers another window into the search for wisdom and an understanding of nature – a pursuit to which many alchemists devoted their lives.
Preserving the wisdom of our ancestors
Behind the walls of the large corner house – which immediately makes me think of a set from a Harry Potter film – extraordinary collections unfold across three floors. The museum is filled with objects of every imaginable kind, each telling a piece of the story of the development of pharmacy in Slovenia and around the world.
Stepping into a time when knowledge, art and the care of human health were deeply intertwined is a remarkable experience.
