Neorussian Style in Architecture

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This direction in architecture became widespread at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries and is characterized by a turn to motifs of ancient Russian architecture with the aim of reviving national traditions and the distinctiveness of Russian culture. Its distinction from the closely related "Russian" (or "pseudo-Russian") style of the same period lies in moving away from crude copying and even borrowing of elements in favor of generalizing forms and subtle stylization of prototypes.

Nikonov's House

Kolokolnaya St., 11, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191025

House No. 11 will definitely catch your eye – and it will be difficult to immediately appreciate all the small details that richly adorn its design. The luxurious exterior of the facade clearly reveals Russian motifs.

The House That Managed to Influence the History of the Empire (The Basov House)

pl. Ostrovskogo, 5, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191023

The income house of the Russian architect Nikolai Petrovich Basin rises on Ostrovsky Square, in the historic center of Saint Petersburg. The architectural ensemble of the square is considered one of the highest achievements of urban planning art and was formed with the participation of Karl Ivanovich Rossi. Basin's income house stands out vividly against the backdrop of classical buildings and, according to some critics, brazenly and absurdly disrupts the surrounding established ensemble.

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood — Legends and Myths

Griboedov Canal Embankment, 2B, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191186

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood — an Orthodox church, whose full name is the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ, is located in the historic center of Saint Petersburg, on the embankment of the Griboedov Canal. It is a memorial to Tsar-Martyr Alexander II, who died at this site at the hands of terrorists.

The Church of Seraphim of Sarov at the Peterhof Metochion of the Seraphim-Diveyevo Monastery

41A-007, 11, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 198504

On July 17, 1903, Emperor Nicholas II and his family visited Sarov for the celebrations of the glorification of Venerable Seraphim as a saint. And a year after this trip to Sarov and bathing in its spring, the Empress gave birth to the long-awaited heir, which explains the special attitude of Nicholas II and his family towards this saint. The decision to establish it was made by the Tsar after Empress Alexandra gave birth to the long-awaited son, having bathed in the Sarov spring. It was there that Nicholas learned about the beginning of the First World War.

The State Bank building in Nizhny Novgorod

Bolshaya Pokrovskaya St., 26, Nizhny Novgorod, Nizhny Novgorod Region, Russia, 603005

The complex of buildings of the State Bank was constructed in 1911–1913 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the Romanov Dynasty (which is marked by the dates "1613" and "1913" on its main pediment). This is the most prominent building on the main tourist street of Nizhny Novgorod, the second truly outstanding monument of our city after the Stroganov Church. Once, next to the bank, there was the Church of the Intercession of the Holy Virgin, which gave its name to Bolshaya Pokrovskaya Street.

Lost Estates: Maksimov's Dacha in Oranienbaum

Krasnoflotskoye Highway, 16, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 198412

Maximov's dacha in the town of Lomonosov (Oranienbaum) on Krasnoflotskoye Highway, 16, is a federal architectural monument. A researcher of the architectural heritage of the Peterhof Road and Oranienbaum, Gorbatenko, wrote in his monograph: “The facades and even (a rare case) the interiors of the main building have largely preserved their historical architecture.” This house is a kind of “last of the Mohicans” of the extensive dacha heritage from the turn of the 19th-20th centuries along the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland.

"Fairy Tale House." The Income House of P. I. Koltsov, Lost Masterpieces

Angliyskiy Ave., 21, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 190121

In 1909, architect A. A. Bernardazzi, commissioned by gold miner Koltsov, built an income house on the corner of Officers' Street and English Avenue, which immediately earned the nickname "Fairy Tale House" among the people of St. Petersburg due to its appearance. A whimsical blend of various romantic styles — "Northern Modern" and "National Style," windows and balconies of fanciful shapes, a corner tower, walls clad in natural stone, and colorful majolica panels, believed by some experts to be based on sketches by Vrubel, allowed the author to create, against the backdrop of the ordinary buildings of old Kolomna, a magical spectacle reminiscent of a dazzling theatrical set. On the facade, sculptor Raush von Traubenberg carved from stone a Phoenix bird, which seemed to support the corner bay window of the "Fairy Tale House" on its wings.

Chernov's Dacha or Sosnovka

Oktyabrskaya Embankment, 72, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 193079

Chernov's Dacha, or Sosnovka, is a monument of the architectural eclecticism period in the Nevsky District of Saint Petersburg, located on the right bank of the Neva River, above the Volodarsky Bridge, opposite the former River Station.

Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God of the Vyshny Volochyok Kazan Convent of the Tver Diocese

Maly pr. P.S., 69, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 197136

Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God of the Vyshnevolotsky Kazan Convent of the Tver Diocese. The metochion was closed on June 6, 1923, converted into a student dormitory, and later rebuilt into a residential building by architect F.A. Lykhin.