The I. D.Voronin Joint Local Lore Museum of the Republic of Mordovia is the largest cultural and educational institution in the Republic. The structure of the museum: department of the pre-revolutionary history, department of the 20th c. history, department of nature, department of ethnography. The permanent exhibition starts with an introduction hall dedicated to the Mordovian wedding. This is an attempt to translate the book The Mordovian Wedding by the well-known enlightener, ethnographer and linguist M. E. Evseviev into the language of museum. The first hall of the pre-revolutionary department is dedicated to the early period of the Mordovian history. This exhibition starts with the archeology section where artifacts dating back to the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages are displayed. The adjoining halls tell story about participation of Mordvins in the peasant wars, Patriotic War of 1812, there are objects, books, pre-revolutionary furniture, materials about our famous fellow-countrymen: F. F. Ushakov, А. I. Polezhaev, N. P. Ogarev, the Decemberists brothers Appolon Vasilievich Vedenyapin and Alexei Vasilievich Vedenyapin.

    Of particular interest is a maquette of a chimneyless izba (log cabin) One can see the interior and part of its exterior. Visitors can see peasants' domestic life of past centuries. The next hall shows the condition of industries and culture of the area in the early 20th century.

    The exhibition halls of the second story present the basic stages of the 20th c. history starting with the events of the October 1917. The exhibition organizers also showed the present day of the Republic. The display cases present products of leading manufacturing companies of Mordovia. The materials of the contemporary history department are constantly expanding.

    The department of nature is a most visited one in the museum. The cooperation of exhibition organizers, artists and sculptors resulted in creation of a very interesting and entertaining permanent exhibition. Natural sceneries presented in display cases - forests, rivers, meadows with their wild life - provide a glimpse of landscapes in Mordovia