Star House (Museum of Far Eastern Art)

The Star House (Kamienica pod Gwiazdą) is a Baroque townhouse on Toruń's Old Town Market Square that now holds the Museum of Far Eastern Art, and people come both for the building itself and for the Asian collection inside. A medieval house rebuilt in 1697, it wears a richly moulded façade topped with a gilded star, which makes it one of the most photographed fronts on the square. Since 1970 it has displayed Poland's first permanent collection of Far Eastern art, so a single visit combines Polish Baroque architecture with objects from China and Japan.

The house was remodelled in 1697, and its front is the reason it stands out among the merchant houses lining the square: an ornate, richly moulded Baroque façade finished at the top with a gilded star. Step inside and the architecture continues with a rare carved wooden spiral staircase, decorated with a figure of Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom. Between the exterior and the stairwell, the building is worth looking at closely before you reach the exhibits.

Since 1970 the Star House has housed the Museum of Far Eastern Art, Poland's first permanent collection devoted to Asian art. The holdings include Chinese bronzes that are over three thousand years old, along with porcelain, jade and Japanese objects. The pairing is unusual: an ancient Asian collection presented inside a seventeenth-century Polish townhouse, on a square better known for Gothic brick and its link to Copernicus.

The museum suits anyone interested in Asian art, in Baroque interiors, or simply in one of the square's landmark houses. Because the collection is focused rather than sprawling, it works well as a shorter stop that you can combine with the surrounding sights. Opening times, ticket prices and any temporary closures are best confirmed through the museum's official channels before you go.

The Star House sits directly on the Old Town Market Square, so it is a natural stop while you are already exploring the medieval centre. From here you are a short walk from the Old Town Hall, the riverside Gothic streets and the sites tied to Nicolaus Copernicus. See our Toruń guide for how to string these together into a day in the city.