Changing exhibitions
"Project Famo" has been selected as one of the museum's changing exhibitions for the 2026 season.
The new changing exhibition presents the history and restoration progress of the "Famo", a German 18-ton giant (Sd.Kfz. 9 half-track, registration SA3824) that arrived in Finland in early 1944. during the war, the Famos used by the Assault Gun Battalion were responsible for evacuating and towing tanks. The tractor on display at the Parola Armour Museum is a nationwide rarity and one of only two Famos purchased from Germany by Finland in 1944. These half-track trucks, manufactured by the Vomag factory, were used by the Panzer Regiment in Parola after the war until 1964, after which the one now at the museum was preserved.
The exhibition covers the life cycle of this specific Famo from the war years to the present day, as well as the various stages of its decades-long restoration project. The Famo at the Armour Museum will be restored to its wartime appearance and returned to running condition. In addition to the vehicle itself, the exhibition includes photographs, texts, and showcase items from the Famo's eventful journey across the decades.
The second exhibition,
"Destroyed Soviet Steell - Tank Destroyers at work in the Summer of 1944" focuses on the history of the hundreds of Soviet tanks destroyed on the Finnish front in 1944 from the perspective of anti-tank defense.
The history of the heavy Soviet IS-2 main battle tank, which arrived permanently at the Armour Museum this spring, is strongly linked to the theme of the exhibition. This tank model was used by Soviet troops during the major offensive in the summer of 1944, when Finns destroyed and stopped them in the terrain of the Karelian Isthmus.
The Parola Armour Museum also presents the equipment of wartime opponents used on Finnish soil, and therefore, acquiring the IS-2 as part of the collection is a very significant matter for the Parola Armour Museum. Finnish forces managed to repel these tanks in the summer of 1944, but not a single unit was captured as war booty. Now, this Soviet tank is on display for visitors in Parola.
In addition to the tank itself, this exhibition includes a wealth of interesting photographic material and documents, graphically illustrating how so much was achieved with so little.
