The Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation is one of the largest museums in Riga, the impressive collections of which are dedicated to the history of the Latvian capital since its foundation. It is located in the heart of the ancient city, its historic Old Riga (Vecriga). The extensive collection of valuable and rare exhibits occupies the halls of the legendary Riga Cathedral, the 16th-18th-centuries houses of Riga citizens, the famous Mentzendorff House, and the Latvian Museum of Photography. Besides, a small exhibition is displayed at the Ainazi Naval School in Ainazi.

In total, the museum's archive contains more than half a million unique exhibits, divided into 80 collections. It all began in the 18th century with a small private collection of the Riga doctor and pharmacist, passionate collector, and later a patron of the arts Nikolaus von Himsel. After the death of Mr. von Himsel, the collection was transferred to Riga according to his will. The city reciprocated by creating a museum named after him in the building of the anatomical theater.

A few years later, the museum was transferred to the building of the Riga Dom Cathedral, where it is still located. Today, this event is evidenced by the image of an astrolabe and the modest inscription "Muzeum" on the wall. During the 19th century, the collection of Nikolaus von Himsel was supplemented with the city's coin collection, as well as the collections of the society for the study of history and antiquities of the Baltic regions of Russia and the Riga's Society of Nature Explorers.

The Himsel Museum was renamed the Dom Museum according to its location, but then World War II, the most destructive period in world art, began. Part of the archive was lost, the other part was taken out to the countries occupied by Germany, and the few exhibits that were preserved in the museum were given a new name "Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation". This is how the museum is called today. It continues to collect bit by bit the items lost during the war, return artworks to their homeland and assemble new collections.