Shooting Society

Wooden targets known as royal targets measured around one and a half metres across. Each hit was marked with the shooter's name. The collection also includes metal targets, rifles, decorations, commemorative medals and the society's chest. The surviving objects date from the eighteenth to twentieth centuries.

The society's traditional foundation date is 1510. Its original task was to defend Kežmarok against attack. Members included town officials, craftsmen, teachers and even clergy, so it was not an exclusively professional military formation.

From the eighteenth century, the society developed into a sporting association. Competition memorabilia illustrate this change: the duty to defend the town was joined by contests for the best score.

Photographs show the former shooting range, members' social life and well-known local marksmen. The organisation's history ended towards the close of the Second World War. The society ceased operating at that time and was never re-established.