The tradition of careful preservation of heritage of ancestors originates since ancient times. At the beginning of a new era, people not to lose communication with the past, accurately stored clothes, the weapon, the products of the life which have devolved to them by inheritance in huge chests. When these things became very much that they already simply weren't located in larets, people decided to collect all available surplus in one place and to expose them on a public inspection. So there were first museums of local lore.
In Kazakhstan one of the oldest museums of this kind settles down in Uralsk. Today in funds of the West Kazakhstan regional local history museum about hundred thousand exhibits oldest from which are the V-IV centuries are dated BC.
The West Kazakhstan regional local history museum was created in 1836. As his founder the teacher of the Ural army school M.K.Kurilin acted, with support of the known scientist and traveler G. S. Karelin.
Originally the museum settled down in the school building. However over time its exposition considerably expanded that led to registration change.
Today in the main building of a museum 8 specialized halls where the exhibits narrating as about certain historic figures (khan Zhangir, ханша Fatima), and the whole eras (the Middle Ages, the period of the USSR, independent Kazakhstan) are collected settle down. Besides, now the structure of a museum includes 8 branches – a house museum E.Pugacheva, A.S. Pushkin's museum, a historical and ethnographic museum of Zhangir of the khan, a museum of artist S. Gumarov, a museum of history of arts of D. Nurpeysova, the Karatobinsky regional local history museum of M. Meraliyev, a local history museum of Syrym Datov, and also a local history museum of the settlement Kokterek.
Number of the most significant exhibits of the West Kazakhstan regional local history museum treat: silver фалар (ІV of century BC), podpruzhny bronze metal plates (V-І the V centuries BC), the silver ladle presented by Elizabeth І to ataman M. Ponomarev (to H_H in), a serpentine saber (XV ІІІ century), a stone altar (V-І the V centuries BC).
