The European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA) is presented each year by the European Museum Forum (EMF) under the auspices of the Council of Europe. The EMYA is considered the most important annual award in the European museum sector. Museums in 47 European countries, all members of the Council of Europe, can take part in the competition if they are newly opened or have undergone modernization or expansion in the past three years.
The EMYA was founded in 1977 by British journalist Kenneth Hudson, British academic Richard Hoggart, and John Letts, under the auspices of the Council of Europe. It is considered to be the most important award in its sector, being described by the Network of European Museums (NEMO) as “the longest-running and most prestigious museum awards in Europe”. The Fonds de dotation de l’ICOM of the International Council of Museums supports the European Museum of the Year Award. The EMF state that the European Museum of the Year is based on:
This award goes to a museum which contributes most directly to attracting audiences and satisfying its visitors with unique atmosphere, imaginative interpretation and presentation, a creative approach to education and social responsibility.
– European Museum Forum, (2019).
The EMF state that the Council of Europe Museum Prize is based on:
This prestigious prize is awarded on the recommendations of the EMYA Judging Panel, by the Committee on Culture, Science and Education of the Council of Europe to a museum which puts particular emphasis on a clearly understandable presentation of a European perspective and of the interplay between local and European identities, working with themes of European relevance and adhering to key values and priorities of democracy, human rights, tolerance and intercultural dialogue, of bridging cultures and overcoming social and political borders.
– European Museum Forum, (2019).
