The Salzburg Museum in Austria has been awarded the European Museum of the Year Award by the European Museum Forum.

The museum was selected based on its diversity of exhibitions. According the panel of judges, the museum provides “an excellent example of a package of qualities which are highly satisfying, both from a museological and users’ point of view”.

The museum reopened in 2007 following its relocation to the Neuen Residenz. Formerly called the Provincialmusuem, the institution acts as the museum of artistic and cultural history for the city and region of Salzburg.

Other museums nominated for the 2009 price included the Archaeological Centre of Almoina in Valencia, Spain; the Museum of Life Stories in Speicher, Switzerland; and Museum of Modern Art in Istanbul, Turkey.

The European Museum Forum was founded in 1977 and is run by the European Museum Forum Trust, a charity operating under the auspices of the Council of Europe.