On Thursday members of the public and former employees of the Finnish post office (Itella) gathered to take a final glimpse of the museum, which has been an oasis for philatelists and collectors of postcards.

The current premises of the museum owned by the Ilmarinen pension insurance company have become too expensive, and Itella says it would rather achieve savings by cutting rental costs than by redundancies. However after the move to Tampere, the staff level of the museum will drop from twelve to nine persons.

The move to Tampere, though, will attract more visitors. In Helsinki, the Post Museum drew some 40,000 people annually. This compares to 100,000 at the Museum Centre Vapriikki in Tampere.

Petteri Takkula, curator of the Post Museum, is upbeat about the move.

“Vapriikki is a major attraction where the Post Museum will function within a dynamic environment. Other events there will bring us new visitors,” he says.