Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Macchu Picchu
Peru • 10 days, 9 nights
Peru: Machu Picchu & the Last Incan Bridges
from
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
View all trips
Loading...
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
Pasties are an Upper Michigan tradition dating back to mining days.
Lehto’s Pasties
Stock up on picnic supplies with a side of history.
Horton Bay General Store
Take some of Michigan’s produce home with you.
American Spoon
The local catch is delicious fried as well.
Terry's of Charlevoix
Carlson’s Fishery is a Great Lakes institution.
Carlson’s Fishery
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Here’s which treats you can safely lug home without risking a fine.
Dear Atlas: What International Food Can I Legally Bring Into the U.S.?
Cely’s map is not only accurate, but captures the unique characteristics of Congaree’s trees and waterways.
How One Biologist Drew a Hyper-Accurate, Ranger-Approved Map of Congaree National Park
Though they’re protected inside the park, wolves can be killed when they cross its borders.
Wolves Have a Bad Reputation. One Yellowstone Naturalist Is Trying to Fix It.
The community board at Rex’s Dino Store advertises all kinds of NYC-specific dino services.
We Visited the Dino Bodega in (Jurassic) Park Slope

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Croatia Zagreb Zagreb's Museum of Broken Relationships
AO Edited

Zagreb's Museum of Broken Relationships

Where the lovelorn find a home for their sentimental keepsakes.

Zagreb, Croatia

Added By
Rachel James
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Overview   brokenships.com
Museum of Broken Relationships   brokenships.com
  brokenships.com
Hers   brokenships.com
His   brokenships.com
Owners Olinka Vistina and Drazen Grubisic   brokenships.com
One woman donated an axe that she used to cut up her furniture after being left by her lover.   brokenships.com
Donation from a war veteran in Croatia who fell in love with a social worker in the hospital. The limb lasted longer than the relationship.   brokenships.com
  brokenships.com
  brokenships.com
  brokenships.com
Lobster   brokenships.com
  brokenships.com
A love letter on shattered glass   Jaszmina Szendrey / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
The WiFi password is priceless!   jazzpilot / Atlas Obscura User
  nicholasabateman / Atlas Obscura User
  jazzpilot / Atlas Obscura User
  nicholasabateman / Atlas Obscura User
  User submitted
  User submitted
  User submitted
  User submitted
  milenamilovanovic / Atlas Obscura User
  User submitted
  User submitted
  User submitted
  User submitted
  elsa brante / Atlas Obscura User
  Jaszmina Szendrey / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

We all have different ways of dealing with the mementos left behind when a love is lost. Unable to let go, some of us hide the barrettes he gave us before he left town to “find himself” in an ornate box under the bed, while others burn photos taken of her before she was caught texting a “friend.” The most mundane items in the world suddenly represent everything that might have been.

When Croatian artists Olinka Vistina and Drazen Grubisic separated, their reluctance to part with the sentimental reminders of their fizzled love inspired them to open the Museum of Broken Relationships, so that the items could remain together.

At first glance, this concept may seem to contradict healthy healing, but the idea took off, and while the museum was on tour, people from all over began to donate their reminders of heartbreak. Now the museum has a permanent home in Croatia and contains a fascinating collection of former tokens of affection. Besides the anticipated teddy bears and letters, the collection also includes a few poignant and sometimes unsettling surprises -- a tiny bottle filled with a woman's tears, an axe, and taser gun, and perhaps the strangest offering, a prosthetic leg.

As melancholy as the subject may seem, the museum is quite popular—be it voyeurism, purification, or just the acknowledgment that the lonely feeling of heart sickness is universal, over 1,000 people per week visit the collection. Due to this location's intense success, a second Museum of Broken Relationships opened in Los Angeles in 2016.

The Atlas Obscura Podcast is a short, daily celebration of all the world's strange and wondrous places. Check out this episode about the Museum of Broken Relationships.

Related Tags

Museums And Collections Collections Love Relationships
Atlas Obscura Adventures

Balkans Road Trip: Serbia, Croatia & Bosnia and Herzegovina

Traverse the beauty and history of the Balkans through locals' stories.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

Rachel

Edited By

Molly McBride Jacobson, raymondwinn1941, cdanesh, Jaszmina Szendrey...

  • Molly McBride Jacobson
  • raymondwinn1941
  • cdanesh
  • Jaszmina Szendrey
  • elsa brante
  • Collector of Experiences
  • milenamilovanovic
  • nicholasabateman
  • jazzpilot

Published

July 22, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/a-trip-to-the-museum-of-broken-relationships.html
  • NPR http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89785613
  • http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-16750456
Zagreb's Museum of Broken Relationships
2 Ćirilometodska ul.
Zagreb, 10000
Croatia
45.815008, 15.973605
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Croatian Museum of Naïve Art

Zagreb, Croatia

miles away

Kamenita Vrata (Our Lady of the Stone Gate)

Zagreb, Croatia

miles away

Zagreb 80s Museum

Zagreb, Croatia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Zagreb

Zagreb

Croatia

Places 10
Stories 1

Nearby Places

Croatian Museum of Naïve Art

Zagreb, Croatia

miles away

Kamenita Vrata (Our Lady of the Stone Gate)

Zagreb, Croatia

miles away

Zagreb 80s Museum

Zagreb, Croatia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Zagreb

Zagreb

Croatia

Places 10
Stories 1

Related Stories and Lists

Take a Podcast Tour of Some of the World's Most Unusual Museums

cryptozoology

By April White

Museum of Broken Relationships

Podcast

By The Podcast Team

A Visit to the Museum of Broken Relationships

museums

By Lizzie Philip

A Visit to the Museum of Broken Relationships

Video

By Atlas Obscura

Related Places

  • Neuhausen, Germany

    Nussknackermuseum Neuhausen

    Home to the world's largest collection of nutcrackers.

  • This plush velvet holds a series of spoons from Great Britain.

    Davenport, Iowa

    Mississippi Spoon Gallery

    More than 10,000 spoons, some more than a century old, are gathered here.

  • Silverare

    Weyburn, Saskatchewan

    Soo Line Historical Museum

    The museum showcases the largest private silver collection in Canada, featuring 3,333 pieces.

  • Imperial peachblow glass is visually striking.

    Bellaire, Ohio

    National Imperial Glass Museum

    Collectors keep the story of Ohio Valley glassmaking alive.

  • Bentside Spinet

    Manchester, England

    RNCM Collection of Historic Musical Instruments

    Over 300 historical instruments from around the world can be found in the Royal Northern College of Music's basement.

  • Coins from all over the world are represented here.

    Berlin, Germany

    Berlin Coin Cabinet

    One of the largest numismatic collections in Europe fell victim to a huge theft.

  • The Hat Museum is located inside a former Church of God building.

    Forrest, Illinois

    Jerry's Hat Museum

    Thousands of hats, pens, and pencils, hanging inside the walls of a former church.

  • Outside Tom Devlin’s Monster Museum in Boulder City, NV, with the owner’s custom hearse parked in front.

    Boulder City, Nevada

    Tom Devlin’s Monster Museum

    A professional special effects makeup artist’s collection of horror creatures and one-of-a-kind recreations on display in downtown Boulder City.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.