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The building of the former royal palace houses two outstanding collections - the National Art Gallery and the Ethnographic Institute and Museum at BAS. The Ethnographic Museum was established in 1906 as the National Ethnographic Museum, which in 1949 merged with the Institute of floklore science and so was the beginning of the Ethnographic Institute, headed by academician Stojan Romanski.

Today the museum store 50 000 exhibits, which include a rich collection of objects that belonged to the Bulgarian ethnic groups living outside the territory of Bulgaria - in Serbia, Macedonia, Banat and northern Dobrogea.

The riches of the museum are numerous and are collected in several funds. At the "Home crafts and furniture" are collected objects from home furnishings. At the "Carving hall" are shown objects from everyday life, but also musical instruments and carved church works of the major woodworking schools in Bulgaria - Tryavna, Samokov and Debar. These are icons, crosses, monstrance, banners, altar gates, parts of the iconostasis, church capitals. They are influenced by the European Baroque, Rococo and Empire styles, that entered in Bulgaria during the Revival. The european influences are cleverly intertwined with traditional Bulgarian ornamentation characteristic of the pastoral carving. One of the largest collections stored at the National Ethnographic Museum, is made by shepherds and church carvings - more than 4 000 exhibits.

Division "Agriculture and Livestock" shows objects that accompany the daily work of the villagers during the Middle Ages and the Revival. The museum’s exposure is extremely rich in ceramics. Collection "Ceramics" contains over 4 000 works of the most prosperous pottery centers in Bulgaria - Busintsi, Troyan, Gabrovo, Sofia, Berkovitsa, Chiprovtsi, Razlog, Aitos and others. There are samples of the evolution of pottery from the late nineteenth to mid twentieth century

At the "Rugs and fabrics" are exposed rugs, carpets and more. "Wrought Iron" hall contains a variety of tools and ornaments. Department "Copper" contains over 2 000 objects, made of forged brass. Department "Jewellery" also impresses with its beauty and diversity of its exhibits. Stored in the museum collection are works by Bulgarian goldsmiths with full instrumentation. The exposure contains more than 5 000 objects relating to the XVII - XX century. In the museum the specimens are most often made of silver and its alloys. Relatively small fraction of objects are gilded. Bulgarian traditional goldsmithing techniques are casting, forging, hammering, filigree, granulation. Along with them goldsmiths used in making their works enamel satory, engraving and openwork, installation of stained glass, semiprecious stones and pearl tiles.

The museum also houses the "Requisite customs and rituals", "Traditional folk costumes," "Foreign Art," "Embroidery and tiny tissues" sections. Really interesting is the collection of mummers' masks and costumes in which there are samples made by models of the nineteenth century with preserved traditional technology. Significant is the collection of martenitsi, survachki, wedding flags, votives, ritual jewelry, amulets, ornaments for horse crosses, icons made of silver alloy and bronze, purchased in the late 19th century and early 20th century

Fund "Foreign Art" at the National Ethnographic Museum was founded in the 60s of the twentieth century with materials from different countries, awarded to the museum by government agencies, donations from individuals, materials (clocks, tapestries, towels) from the former royal Palace furniture and redeemed ethnographic materials from the permanent committee of the museum. There are collections of African weapons (shields and arrows), ivory objects from different countries, Chinese tapestries, made with traditional techniques, collection of vases from China, ceramic figures from Ecuador, a collection of desktop clocks from the former palace interior, traditional clothing from different countries, musical instruments, two boomerangs and a quiver of arrows from Australia.