The museum's director Markita Franulic on Thursday said that the initiative to change the museum's name was proposed last year by Mayor Milan Bandic. After it was established that Tesla has no descendants who should give consent to the use of Tesla's name, registration was conducted in the Commercial Court and once that is completed, the new name will come into use, Franulic told a press conference.
She recalled the countless events to celebrate this scientist of world renown from the very first day that the museum was opened sixty years ago when great dedication was paid to his honour to daily presentations in the Demonstration Cabinet named after him.
Franulic explained that the museum planned to create a theme park dedicated to renewable energy, reconstruction of the building's facade and adding new programmes relating to Tesla.
More than 152,000 visitors visit the museum each year and the number of programmes, workshops and partner relations have grown. In just the fist six months this year, 110,000 people had already visited the museum, she said.
Mayor Bandic said that the City of Zagreb would support the reconstruction of the museum with European Union funds. "Like all great people, Tesla was modest and was misunderstood, so he departed for America but he never gave up or forgot his homeland," Bandic said.
Senior custodian at the museum Renato Filipin gave a brief presentation of some of Tesla's inventions.
On the occasion of the 159th anniversary of Tesla's birth, several events will be organised from July 9 - 11; "Tesla & friends," the Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the future to mark the Nikola Tesla Days.
Nikola Tesla was born on 10 July 1856 in the village of Smiljan in Croatia's mountainous region of Lika.