Cultural Heritage Of Russia
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The national cultural heritage register of Russia () is a registry of historically or culturally significant man-made immovable properties – landmark buildings, industrial facilities, memorial homes of notable people of the past, monuments, cemeteries and tombs,
archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or recorded history, historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline ...
s and
cultural landscape Cultural landscape is a term used in the fields of geography, ecology, and heritage studies, to describe a symbiosis of human activity and environment. As defined by the World Heritage Committee, it is the "cultural properties hatrepresent the c ...
s – man-made environments and natural
habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...
s significantly altered by humans. The register continues a tradition established in 1947 and is governed by a 2002 law "On the objects of cultural heritage (monuments of culture and history)" (Law 73-FZ). The register is maintained by the Federal Service for Monitoring Compliance with Cultural Heritage Legislation (a branch of the federal
Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: * Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) * Ministry of Culture (Argentina) * Minister for the Arts (Australia) * Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)Ministry o ...
); the publicly available online database is hosted by the Ministry of Culture. Its primary purpose is to aggregate the regional heritage registers maintained by the
federal subjects of Russia The federal subjects of Russia, also referred to as the subjects of the Russian Federation () or simply as the subjects of the federation (), are the administrative division, constituent entities of Russia, its top-level political division ...
, monitor the state of heritage objects and compliance with relevant laws. The legal framework of the register, as of May 2009, remains incomplete and the register itself is not yet matched to lists of protected buildings maintained by regional and municipal authorities. It includes around 100,000 items while the local lists total in excess of 140,000. Of these 42,000 are rated as national landmarks, while the rest are of regional or local significance. The Ministry of Culture admits that many items on the registers have been destroyed. Natural landmarks and reserves (apart from cultural landscapes), movable art, archives, museum and library collections are not part of the register and are governed by different laws and agencies.A roundup of legislation on different preservation topics is provided in: A different listing, State Code of Particularly Valuable Objects of Cultural Heritage of the Peoples of the Russian Federation,English translation as in created in 1992, includes the most conspicuous man-made landmarks as well as operating institutions: museums, archives, theatres, universities and academies.


Background


Early records (1805–1861)

Local heritage registers in the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
extend to 1805, when
Alexander I Alexander I may refer to: * Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon from 495 to 454 BC * Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus * Alexander I Theopator Euergetes, surnamed Balas, ruler of the Seleucid Empire 150-145 BC * Pope Alex ...
demanded state protection of archaeological sites on the recently conquered
Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...
coast. These
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
, Genoan and
Tatar Tatar may refer to: Peoples * Tatars, an umbrella term for different Turkic ethnic groups bearing the name "Tatar" * Volga Tatars, a people from the Volga-Ural region of western Russia * Crimean Tatars, a people from the Crimea peninsula by the B ...
relics in sparsely populated
steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...
s were regularly looted by
treasure hunters Treasure hunting is the physical search for treasure. One of the most popular types of modern day treasure hunters are historic shipwreck salvors. These underwater treasure salvors try to find sunken shipwrecks and retrieve artifacts with both c ...
. In 1821 minister Alexander Golitsyn limited the scope of protection to Greek and Genoan heritage and denied protection to Tatar and Ottoman buildings. Requirements for a scientific heritage register were formulated in 1823 by Ivan Stempkovsky and enforced by governor
Vorontsov The House of Vorontsov (), also Woroncow and de Woroncow-Wojtkowicz, is the name of a Russian noble family whose members attained the dignity of Counts of the Holy Roman Empire in 1744 and became Princes of the Russian Empire on 6 April 1845 ...
. In 1826, emperor Nicholas I decreed compilation of Russia's first nationwide register of architectural "antiquities". The decree prohibited demolition of historical "castles, fortresses and other ancient buildings", imposed local governors' responsibility for their preservation and required them to compile lists of notable local properties, backed by archive research and where qualified architects were available, by proper architectural drawings of their facades and floorplans. Churches were omitted from the decree, – Nicholas at that time did not want to interfere with clergy; a similar but less strict decree on religious heritage was issued in 1828. Nicholas did not explain what, specifically, constituted protected buildings, so initial responses from the provinces listed both pre- petrine buildings and contemporary neoclassical landmarks. Within the 1830s official and public understanding of "antiquities" was narrowed to Russia's "indigenous" art of pre-petrine periods;
baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
and neoclassicism of the 18th century, regarded as recent foreign influence, were exempt. Recognition of these styles as national heritage did not occur until the Russian neoclassical revival of the early 1900s. The first regional register (album) of listed buildings was published in 1830 in
Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( ; , ; ), also known simply as Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the V ...
(including relics of
Belozersk Belozersk (), known as Beloozero () until 1777, is a town and the administrative center of Belozersky District in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the southern bank of Lake Beloye, from which it takes the name, northwest of Vologda, the admi ...
). In 1839 Andrey Glagolev published "Russian Fortresses", in 1844–1846 Ivan Pushkarev published four volumes on Northern Russian heritage. Professional studies of ancient architecture did not gain momentum until the 1840s, when the country accumulated a critical mass of architects trained in restoration projects in
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
and
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
at the expense of the
Imperial Academy of Arts The Imperial Academy of Arts, informally known as the Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts, was an art academy in Saint Petersburg, founded in 1757 by Ivan Shuvalov, the founder of the Imperial Moscow University, under the name ''Academy of th ...
. Materials on
Kievan Rus Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,. * was the first East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical Atlas of Russ ...
relics collected in the 1820s–1834, compiled by
Konstantin Thon Konstantin Andreyevich Thon or Ton (; October 26, 1794 – January 25, 1881) was a Russian architect who was one of the most notable architects during the reign Nicholas I. His major works include the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, the Grand ...
, contributed to the formulation of the official Russo-Byzantine style of the 1830s–1850s. Eventually the compilation duties were delegated to the Russian Archaeological Society, established in 1846–1849. The
building code A building code (also building control or building regulations) is a set of rules that specify the standards for construction objects such as buildings and non-building structures. Buildings must conform to the code to obtain planning permis ...
of 1857 separated responsibility for preservation of historical buildings (17th century and earlier) depending on property type. State properties were now governed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with restoration financed by local taxes. Restoration of urban churches had to be approved by the
Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox ...
, restoration of rural churches by local
bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
, with prior consent of a civilian city architect. Private properties remained largely unregulated. An Imperial Archeological Commission, established in 1859, was tasked with maintenance of the register; however, it was never adequately financed.


Societies and Commissions (1861–1917)

During the reign of Alexander II (1856–1881) the dominant policy shifted from preservation of buildings to recreation of their perceived, frequently fictional, "original" looks. The change was influenced by Western European experience, particularly works by Jonathan Smith and Viollet-le-Duc, as well as domestic political unrest. After the 1863 uprising in Poland Alexander launched a campaign of reintroducing
Orthodoxy Orthodoxy () is adherence to a purported "correct" or otherwise mainstream- or classically-accepted creed, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical co ...
into Western provinces, including restoration of ruined Orthodox churches. To help formulate the new
canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...
,
Grigory Gagarin Prince Grigory Grigorievich Gagarin (, - ) was a Russian painter, Major General and administrator.Grig ...
(vice-president of the Archaeological Society) instituted a special commission for "the studies of Russian and Orthodox in general, monuments of the Western Territory". In less than ten years the commission catalogued the Orthodox heritage of western
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
,
Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...
and
Congress Poland Congress Poland or Congress Kingdom of Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. It was established w ...
, paying special attention to churches initially built as Orthodox and later converted to
Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
; these were repossessed and eventually rebuilt to Orthodox canon. In the second half of the 1860s Gagarin and count Alexey Uvarov solved the problem of managing the national register; in particular, Uvarov is credited with establishment of the non-governmental (1869), a professional institution that literally "kept the nation's records" and was the public
watchdog Watchdog or watch dog may refer to: Animals *Guard dog, a dog that barks to alert its owners of an intruder's presence * Portuguese Watchdog, Cão de Castro Laboreiro, a dog breed * Moscow Watchdog, a breed of dog that was bred in the Soviet U ...
for preservation until the
October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...
. It tried to secure an exclusive right to approve or
veto A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president (government title), president or monarch vetoes a bill (law), bill to stop it from becoming statutory law, law. In many countries, veto powe ...
any changes to listed buildings, but failed; in 1874 these rights were granted to an Imperial Commission composed of members of Archaeological Societies, the Holy Synod,
Russian Academy of Sciences The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across the Russian Federation; and additional scientific and social units such ...
and the Academy of Arts. In the same year the state finally formulated the legal meaning of ''architectural landmark'' and ensured equal protection for church and civil properties. The register compiled by Archaeological Societies was augmented by regional catalogues published by amateurs such as Nikolay Naidenov, author of the four-volume "Moscow Cathedrals, Monasteries and Churches" (1883–1888). Amateurs were not bound by the official borderline between "antiquities" and
modernity Modernity, a topic in the humanities and social sciences, is both a historical period (the modern era) and the ensemble of particular Society, socio-Culture, cultural Norm (social), norms, attitudes and practices that arose in the wake of the ...
and thus preserved all-inclusive snapshots of their period. In the 1890s protection was gradually extended to selected buildings of the 18th century, however, their classification as heritage remained debatable until the 1900s. Late 18th and 19th century
Empire style The Empire style (, ''style Empire'') is an early-nineteenth-century design movement in architecture, furniture, other decorative arts, and the visual arts, representing the second phase of Neoclassicism. It flourished between 1800 and 1815 duri ...
buildings were placed on the register shortly before
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
through the efforts of
Ivan Mashkov Ivan Pavlovich Mashkov (, 13 January 1867 – 13 August 1945) was a Russian architect and preservationist, known for surveying and restoring buildings such as the Dormition Cathedral, Moscow, Dormition Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin, Novodevichy ...
,
Ilya Bondarenko Ilya Yevgrafovich Bondarenko (; 1867–1947) was a Russian-Soviet Union, Soviet architect, historian and preservationist, notable for developing a particular style of Old Believers architecture in 1905-1917, blending Northern Russian revival wit ...
of Moscow Architectural Society and the Saint Petersburg school of Russian neoclassical revival.


Denial of heritage (1917–1941)

In the years immediately after the October Revolution, the
Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...
administration had not yet forged its policy on culture; it was outwardly hostile to religion and "upper" classes, at the same time allowing preservationists to have a say in daily life of Soviet cities. The same person,
Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...
, decreed destruction of tsarist monuments and removal of church properties and at the same time authorized maintenance of cultural heritage registers. In the early 1920s the government supported conversion of significant historical buildings into public museums. Notable preservationists like Petr Baranovsky, Ilya Bondarenko and Petr Sytin took over nationalized landmarks for museums of local "people's heritage" and managed to delay their destruction and keep the record of surviving local heritage. However, in the second half of the 1920s, the policy reversed to outward denial of this heritage and shutting down "redundant" local museums. With the change in values imposed by
communist ideology Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, d ...
, the tradition of preservation was broken. Independent preservation societies, even those that defended only secular landmarks such as Moscow-based OIRU were disbanded by the end of the 1920s. A new anti-religious campaign, launched in 1929, coincided with
collectivization Collective farming and communal farming are various types of "agricultural production in which multiple farmers run their holdings as a joint enterprise". There are two broad types of communal farms: agricultural cooperatives, in which member- ...
of peasants; destruction of churches in the cities peaked around 1932. The rise of
Stalinist architecture Stalinist architecture (), mostly known in the former Eastern Bloc as Stalinist style or socialist classicism, is the architecture of the Soviet Union under the leadership of Joseph Stalin, between 1933 (when Boris Iofan's draft for the Palace o ...
had dual consequences. On one hand, gigantic reconstruction plans demanded demolition of anything caught in the way. In Moscow, the new plans resulted in reducing the heritage register from 474 items in 1925 to just 74 in 1935; national
RSFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...
register shrunk from over 3,000 to 1,200. The establishment of the Academy of Architecture marginally improved attitudes towards the national heritage; the academy provided a new forum for preservationists. In 1940 the academy compiled its own list of top-priority landmarks and assessed the damages, but comprehensive national or even regional heritage registers did not reappear until after
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. The few landmarks set aside by the planners of the 1930s remained protected and restored until the German invasion.


Post-war recovery (1945–1959)

Losses of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, conservatively estimated at 3,000 landmarks, and a wartime shift in favor of
nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...
ideology An ideology is a set of beliefs or values attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely about belief in certain knowledge, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones". Form ...
raised the politicians' attention to the problems of surviving national heritage. In 1947 Council of Ministers of the
RSFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...
approved the new comprehensive list of more than 600 top priority buildings and ensembles. Detailed legal instruction on recordkeeping and protection followed in 1948. The 1947 decree limited the scope of protected buildings to "ancient Russian" art, although the register included singular objects of
Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
culture (Khan's
Mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...
of the
Bakhchisaray Palace The Khan's Palace (; ) or Hansaray is located in the town of Bakhchysarai, Crimea. It was built in the 16th century and became home to a succession of Crimean Khans. The walled enclosure contains a mosque, a harem, a cemetery, living quarters and ...
and the fortress of
Derbent Derbent, also historically known as Darband, or Derbend, is the southernmost city in Russia. It is situated along the southeastern coast of the Dagestan, Republic of Dagestan, occupying the narrow gateway between the Caspian Sea and the Caucas ...
) and many 19th-century buildings. More than half of listed buildings were located in the historical northern lands of the former
Novgorod Republic The Novgorod Republic () was a medieval state that existed from the 12th to 15th centuries in northern Russia, stretching from the Gulf of Finland in the west to the northern Ural Mountains in the east. Its capital was the city of Novgorod. The ...
and Vladimir Rus, with a substantial share of
vernacular Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken language, spoken form of language, particularly when perceptual dialectology, perceived as having lower social status or less Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestige than standard language, which is mor ...
wooden architecture.
Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( ; , ; ), also known simply as Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the V ...
and
Pskov Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=Ru-Псков.oga, p=psˈkof; see also Names of Pskov in different languages, names in other languages) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov O ...
, largely destroyed during the war, were restored. Registers for the other republics of the Union and the cities of
Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...
and
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
were developed independently (Moscow, in particular, benefited from its 800-year anniversary celebrated in 1947). Religious buildings dominated the registers, a consequence of a "conciliatory" policy toward the Russian Orthodox Church that was practiced in the last decade of
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
's tenure.


Khrushchev's offensive (1959–1964)

Between 1951 and 1955, 37 buildings (mostly churches) were struck off the list. In 1960 the government approved a larger, purportedly all-inclusive register of more than 30 thousand buildings. However, shortly before the list was finalized,
Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and the Premier of the Soviet Union, Chai ...
launched his anti-religious campaign of 1959–1964. By 1964 over 10 thousand churches out of 20 thousand were shut down (mostly in rural areas) and many were demolished. Of 58 monasteries and convents operating in 1959, only sixteen remained by 1964; of Moscow's fifty churches operating in 1959, thirty were closed and six demolished. The 1960 register also suffered reductions, notably in 1963 when authorities struck
Troitse-Sergiyeva Lavra The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius () is a lavra and the most important Russian monastery, being the spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church. The monastery is situated in the town of Sergiyev Posad, about to the northeast from Mosco ...
and other landmarks.Problemy ucheta... Destruction reached into
Moscow Kremlin The Moscow Kremlin (also the Kremlin) is a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia. Located in the centre of the country's capital city, the Moscow Kremlin comprises five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Kremlin Wall along with the K ...
when the
Palace of Congresses The Palace of Congresses () is a venue in Tirana, Albania, where numerous multi-genre concerts, exhibition, festivals, competitions and other events are held, including the annual Festivali i Këngës and Kënga Magjike and the Tirana Book Fai ...
replaced the "old" buildings of the
Kremlin Armoury The Kremlin ArmouryOfficially called the "Armoury Chamber" but also known as the cannon yard, the "Armoury Palace", the "Moscow Armoury", the "Armoury Museum", and the "Moscow Armoury Museum" but different from the Kremlin Arsenal. () is one of ...
. In an unrelated move, in 1956, Khrushchev shut down the Academy of Architecture, an established venue for restorers and historians of architecture. Khrushchev's campaign backfired, triggering a rise in public attention to national heritage and to the dismal state of the
ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...
. In March, 1962 a group of intellectuals published a bitter article on the destruction of old Moscow in ''Moskva'' monthly; official ''
Pravda ''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, 'Truth') is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most in ...
'' responded with harsh criticism in May. A public call to establish an independent watchdog society was just as harshly rejected. Two years later and six months ''before'' Khrushchev's fall from power, the first truly independent preservation society, ''Rodina'', was founded in Moscow by Petr Baranovsky; barely tolerated by authorities, ''Rodina'' survived into the early 1970s.


Formal protection (1965–1991)

In 1965,
Pavel Korin Pavel Dmitriyevich Korin (; - 22 November 1967) was a Russian painter and art art conservation and restoration, restorer. He is famous for his preparational work for the unimplemented painting ''Farewell to Rus''. Life and career Pavel Kori ...
,
Sergey Konenkov Sergey Timofeyevich Konenkov, also Sergei Konyonkov (; – 9 December 1971) was a Russian and Soviet Union, Soviet sculptor. He was often called "the Russian Auguste Rodin, Rodin". Early life Konenkov was born in a peasant family, in a vi ...
and
Leonid Leonov Leonid Maksimovich Leonov (; — 8 August 1994) was a Soviet novelist and playwright of socialist realism. His works have been compared with Dostoevsky's deep psychological torment. Early life Leonov was born in Moscow in 1899. His father, Ma ...
published a call to stop destroying churches and, literally, "preserve our sacred places". Two months later, in an apparent reversal of Khrushchev's past, the state announced creation of VOOPIK – a national preservation society controlled by the state. However, preparation for its founding congress demonstrated that the state actually intended to create a powerless front group. It subordinated VOOPIK to
Party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will oft ...
bureaucrats and denied it the right to publish a journal. Disillusioned advocates (
Vladimir Soloukhin Vladimir Alexeyevich Soloukhin () (June 14, 1924 – April 4, 1997) was a Russian poet and writer. Biography Born in Alepino, a village in what is now in Sobinsky District, Vladimir Oblast, he was raised in a peasant family. He attended ...
,
Ilya Glazunov Ilya Sergeyevich Glazunov (; 10 June 1930 – 9 July 2017) was a Soviet and Russian artist from Saint Petersburg. He was the founder of the Russian Academy of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture where he also served as a rector up until his de ...
) moved to a public forum of '' Molodaya Gvardiya'' magazine, shaping a new, nationalist, version of
Russian history The history of Russia begins with the histories of the East Slavs. The traditional start date of specifically Russian history is the establishment of the Rus' people, Rus' state in the north in the year 862, ruled by Varangians. In 882, Prin ...
that sharply contradicted official
doctrine Doctrine (from , meaning 'teaching, instruction') is a codification (law), codification of beliefs or a body of teacher, teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a ...
. Nevertheless, VOOPIK provided a forum to preservationists; discussions inside VOOPIK eventually led to legitimising previously suppressed
nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...
issues; the dues paid by 15 million "mandatory volunteers" financed restoration projects. The society contributed to the heritage register but was never entrusted to manage it. In 1974 the government of the
RSFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...
produced a broader and stable version of the national register, reversing the 1960s reductions. In 1978 new practices for heritage monitoring were formulated in new national and republican laws "On protection and usage of monuments of history and culture". In reality, landmarks were informally split into two groups. The most conspicuous ones, the tourist showcases, were largely untouchable and barely maintained; the rest were left to rot without proper maintenance. Sometimes these dilapidated buildings fell prey to one-off "cleanup" campaigns like those that preceded the 1972 state visit by
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
or the
1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad () and officially branded as Moscow 1980 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1980 in Moscow, Soviet Union, in present-day Russ ...
, sometimes to
urban renewal Urban renewal (sometimes called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address real or perceived urban decay. Urban renewal involves the clearing ...
programs inherited from Stalin's master plans. Between 1965 and 1984, Moscow's preservation budget increased from 2 to 25 million roubles, or still less than 0.5% of the city's capital construction budget. Meager financing forced the authorities to freeze the heritage register as of its 1974 version. In Moscow about 1,200 buildings made the list, while about 1,100 new applications were rejected. 2,200 Moscow landmarks (mostly unlisted) disappeared during
Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev (19 December 190610 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1964 until Death and state funeral of Leonid Brezhnev, his death in 1982 as w ...
’s tenure (although only three of them were Orthodox churches). In June 1978 Party executive
Mikhail Solomentsev Mikhail Sergeyevich Solomentsev (; – 15 February 2008) was a Soviet politician and statesman. Early life He was born near Yelets and graduated from the Leningrad Technological Institute in 1940. Career Solomentsev was a leading Communist P ...
attempted to appease public opposition, declaring heritage preservation a high priority for the Party and voiced full support for VOOPIK. The message did not appease residents who passed everyday examples of neglect and ruin; Soloukhin wrote: "My book could have contained not four essays but twenty four. I suspect, however, that the effect would have been the same". The policy of empty declarations continued in 1982, when
Dmitry Likhachev Dmitry Sergeyevich Likhachev (, also spelled ''Dmitrii Likhachev'' or ''Dmitry Likhachov''; – 30 September 1999) was a Russian medievalist, linguist, and a former inmate of Gulag. During his lifetime, Likhachev was considered the world's fore ...
reported in ''
Ogonyok ''Ogoniok'' ( rus, Огонёк, Ogonyok, t=Spark, p=ɐɡɐˈnʲɵk, a=Ru-огонёк.ogg; pre-reform orthography: Огонекъ) was one of the oldest weekly illustrated magazines in Russia. History and profile ''Ogoniok'' was first issue ...
'' that the
RSFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...
heritage register must be expanded three-fold, to at least 180 thousand items. The Ministry of Culture immediately concurred with the new estimate and ordered restoration of the buildings pinpointed by Likhachev, yet no work was done. The USSR's final years brought no improvement; in 1986 even hard-line communist
Yegor Ligachev Yegor Kuzmich Ligachyov (also transliterated as Ligachev; ; 29 November 1920 – 7 May 2021) was a Soviet and Russian politician who was a high-ranking official in the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU), and who continued an active po ...
had to admit in public that "destruction of central Moscow has become a political issue" and praised preservationists' efforts. The brief period of
perestroika ''Perestroika'' ( ; rus, перестройка, r=perestrojka, p=pʲɪrʲɪˈstrojkə, a=ru-perestroika.ogg, links=no) was a political reform movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during the late 1980s, widely associ ...
that preceded the fall of the Union did not change the situation radically, apart from allowing the Church to gradually repossess its former properties. Takeover incited conflicts, especially where churches had been occupied by public institutions (as was the case of
Yaroslavl Yaroslavl (; , ) is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historic part of the city is a World Heritage Site, and is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl rivers. ...
Museum of Art, subject of a bitter public campaign of 1990–1993). The first
modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...
buildings were listed in 1987; by 1990 protection was granted to all Moscow buildings designed by
Konstantin Melnikov Konstantin Stepanovich Melnikov (Russian: Константин Степанович Мельников;  – November 28, 1974) was a Russian architect and painter. His architectural work, compressed into a single decade (1923–33), placed ...
.


Post-Soviet Russia (1991–present)

In 1995,
Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin (1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician and statesman who served as President of Russia from 1991 to 1999. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1961 to ...
approved a new, expanded federal heritage register. The new version suffered from inconsistencies influenced by regional politics: for example, numerous residential buildings in
Kirov Oblast Kirov Oblast ( rus, Кировская область, p=ˈkʲirəfskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast) located in Eastern Europe. Its administrative center is the city of Kirov. As of the 2010 census, the population ...
were granted federal protection, while similar buildings elsewhere were considered local, or at best regional, points of interest. It inherited most of the errors present in the 1974 register. Public affection for surviving heritage remained strong: "Any American preservationist would be jealous of the importance assigned to historic preservation by contemporary residents of
Yaroslavl Yaroslavl (; , ) is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historic part of the city is a World Heritage Site, and is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl rivers. ...
", but failed to check the construction boom that destroyed thousands of historical buildings. Moscow losses of 1900–2006 are estimated at over 640 notable buildings (including 150 to 200 listed buildings, out of a total inventory of 3,500) – some disappeared completely, others were replaced with
concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...
replicas while still listed. Only a few cases of destruction (not backed by local authorities) reached the courts; wherever possible, interested developers succeeded in delisting target buildings prior to demolition. As "ethical reference points were swept aside by a torrent of money", former Minister of Culture Alexander Sokolov described the situation as "
bacchanalia The Bacchanalia were unofficial, privately funded popular Roman festivals of Bacchus, based on various ecstatic elements of the Greek Dionysia. They were almost certainly associated with Rome's native cult of Liber, and probably arrived in R ...
of uncoordinated construction". The city of Moscow reduced its restoration budget from 150 million
pound sterling Sterling (symbol: £; currency code: GBP) is the currency of the United Kingdom and nine of its associated territories. The pound is the main unit of sterling, and the word '' pound'' is also used to refer to the British currency general ...
in 1989 to barely 8 million in 2004 and at the same time elevated replacement of old buildings with modern replicas to a policy level. In May 2004 mayor
Yury Luzhkov Yury Mikhailovich Luzhkov ( rus, Юрий Михайлович Лужков, p=ˈjʉrʲɪj mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ lʊˈʂkof; 1936 – 10 December 2019) was a Russian politician who served as mayor of Moscow from 1992 to 2010. Before the elect ...
defended the policy in
Izvestia ''Izvestia'' ( rus, Известия, r=Izvestiya, p=ɪzˈvʲesʲtʲɪjə, "The News") is a daily broadsheet newspaper in Russia. Founded in February 1917, ''Izvestia'', which covered foreign relations, was the organ of the Supreme Soviet of th ...
, saying that "In Moscow culture, the notion of a ''replica'' sometimes has no lesser meaning than the original had. Meaningful historical and cultural 'load' carried by the replica is frequently richer and wider than the original architect's solution." Rebuilding is cheaper than restoration and increases rentable space. The same attitude of decision-makers developed in other towns and was studied in
Yaroslavl Yaroslavl (; , ) is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historic part of the city is a World Heritage Site, and is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl rivers. ...
by Blair Ruble, who identified growing social separation between advocates of preservation and decision-makers: the latter are "among the least identified with the need to preserve", not in the least because the affluent ruling class chooses suburban lifestyle, out of touch with the city.


Legislation

Federal law "On the objects of cultural heritage (monuments of culture and history)", enacted in June 2002, defines these ''objects'' as either standalone buildings or monuments with adjacent territories, or ensembles of buildings, or "notable places" (
cultural landscape Cultural landscape is a term used in the fields of geography, ecology, and heritage studies, to describe a symbiosis of human activity and environment. As defined by the World Heritage Committee, it is the "cultural properties hatrepresent the c ...
s, including historical urban districts and major archaeological sites). A registered object (or a historical event that is key to an object's notability) ''must'' be at least forty years old;Law 73-FZ, article 18.7 the memorial home of a notable person may be registered immediately upon that person's death. Depending on their significance, objects of cultural heritage are assigned to either federal, regional or local (municipal) level (archaeological sites are automatically assigned to federal level). Top priority federal objects (including all
World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
s) form a special subset of "most valuable" objects. They are listed in a separate ''State Code of Particularly Valuable Objects of Cultural Heritage of the Peoples of the Russian Federation'' which, in addition to immovable properties, includes active institutions (theaters, museums, universities, libraries and archives). "Particularly valuable" objects, by definition, are federal state properties, however, in December 2008 Pavlovsk and
Gatchina Gatchina (, ) is a town and the administrative center of Gatchinsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It lies south-south-west of St. Petersburg, along the E95 highway which links Saint Petersburg and Pskov. Population: It was pr ...
palaces, part of a
World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
, became municipal property of the city of Saint Petersburg.
Privatization Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...
of lesser landmarks controlled by the federal government, put on hold in the early 1990s, was allowed in 2008. However, privatization auctions did not catch investors' interest and only about 250 objects changed hands in 2008. Regional listed properties were gradually privatized throughout the 1990s. New properties are listed through a two-tier procedure. In case of regional and local properties, the regional branch of
Rosokhrankultura Rosokhrankultura (), full name: Federal Service for monitoring compliance with cultural heritage protection law (), is a state agency of Russia responsible for keeping the national Russian cultural heritage register, register of cultural heritage, ...
collects all relevant information and issues a recommendation to the regional government; then, actual listing is promulgated by a decree of regional government.Law 73-FZ, article 18.1–9 Professional preservationist organizations usually have significant influence at the early stages of the process, but are barely mentioned in law. Regional legislators and municipal authorities are excluded from the process altogether. The federal register was intended to track and incorporate any changes in regional registers, but as of 2009 it had not happened. Lower-level authorities have limited rights. For example, municipalities cannot register their own objects; instead, they must apply to Rosokhrankultura representatives. Federal authorities can reclassify any object of regional or municipal significance as a federal landmark. Perhaps worse for the objects is that regional governments cannot legally finance restoration of federal-level buildings unless they are specifically mentioned in jointly-financed federal target programs. The law allows financing "preservation" which, in Russian
legalese Legal writing involves the analysis of fact patterns and presentation of arguments in documents such as legal memoranda and briefs. One form of legal writing involves drafting a balanced analysis of a legal problem or issue. Another form of leg ...
, excludes capital investment in restoration. Until January 1, 2008, even this "preservation" was not allowed; at best, regions were allowed to set up independent charities and seek donations.Law 73-FZ, article 13.4 – 2008 and 2007 versions This is particularly important for the city of
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...
and its suburbs, where an overwhelming majority of notable buildings are rated at federal level. Municipal authorities are still not allowed to finance restoration of regional and federal properties, but under the present
Tax Code Tax law or revenue law is an area of legal study in which public or sanctioned authorities, such as federal, state and municipal governments (as in the case of the US) use a body of rules and procedures (laws) to assess and collect taxes in a ...
they have no funds for projects.


Unsolved problems


Definitions

Russia has no legal or otherwise generally accepted definition of
cultural landscape Cultural landscape is a term used in the fields of geography, ecology, and heritage studies, to describe a symbiosis of human activity and environment. As defined by the World Heritage Committee, it is the "cultural properties hatrepresent the c ...
. Local
zoning In urban planning, zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into land-use "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for ...
regulations, once imposed by municipal authorities, can be lifted in favor of "important" projects.


Saint Petersburg

In Saint Petersburg, the city heritage commissioner attempted to enforce demolition of an addition to a building on
Moika Embankment The Moyka (, also latinised as Moika) is a short river in Saint Petersburg which splits from the Neva River. Along with the Neva, the Fontanka river, and canals including the Griboyedov and Kryukov, the Moyka encircles the central portion ...
that wrecked the skyline of this protected neighborhood. However, the building itself was not listed and no sanctions were imposed; the city architect and other involved executives upheld the developer's interests. The city governor approved construction of
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐsˈprom) is a Russian State-owned enterprise, majority state-owned multinational Energy industry, energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. The Gazprom name is a contract ...
's 400-meter
Okhta Center Okhta Center or phonetically Oḱhta-Tseńtr (Russian: О́хта-це́нтр), known before March 2007 as Gazprom City (Russian:Газпро́м-си́ти), was a construction project of a business centre in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It was sup ...
while the outline of
Palace Square Palace Square ( rus, Дворцо́вая пло́щадь, r=Dvortsovaya Ploshchad, p=dvɐrˈtsovəjə ˈploɕːɪtʲ), connecting Nevsky Prospekt with Palace Bridge leading to Vasilievsky Island, is the central city square of St Petersb ...
was deformed by a highrise built behind the former General Staff building; the latter incursion against a
World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
was supported by the city architect. In Moscow, the southward view from
Red Square Red Square ( rus, Красная площадь, Krasnaya ploshchad', p=ˈkrasnəjə ˈploɕːɪtʲ) is one of the oldest and largest town square, squares in Moscow, Russia. It is located in Moscow's historic centre, along the eastern walls of ...
was similarly deformed in 2005 by a 162 meter tall Swissotel tower.


No independent watchdog

No Russian independent preservation group has sufficient influence to intervene into the plans of city authorities and property developers. Legislation leaves matters of preservation to federal and municipal heritage commissions, neither of which are sufficiently independent to check these plans. As a result, listed buildings are easily delisted, or their listing is delayed until the wrecking crews ( Voyentorg building) or fire (
El Lissitzky El Lissitzky (, born Lazar Markovich Lissitzky , ; – 30 December 1941), was a Soviet Jewish artist, active as a painter, illustrator, designer, printmaker, photographer, and architect. He was an important figure of the Russian avant-garde, h ...
's ''
Ogonyok ''Ogoniok'' ( rus, Огонёк, Ogonyok, t=Spark, p=ɐɡɐˈnʲɵk, a=Ru-огонёк.ogg; pre-reform orthography: Огонекъ) was one of the oldest weekly illustrated magazines in Russia. History and profile ''Ogoniok'' was first issue ...
'' printshop) reduce them to ruins.


Property title

A significant share of state-owned landmarks have no legal owner due to disputes between federal and regional authorities and the legal ban on registering title for such properties (lifted in 2008). Saint Petersburg alone, as of April 2008, had 1,200 listed objects without registered titles. Only in 2008 did the authorities agree to register 393 buildings (including
Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and holds the large ...
and Smolny Palace) as federal property and 243 as city property; ownership of
Peter and Paul Fortress The Peter and Paul Fortress () is the original citadel of Saint Petersburg, Russia, founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and built to Domenico Trezzini's designs from 1706 to 1740 as a star fortress. Between the first half of the 1700s and early ...
was split. The last batch of 90 buildings (the most potentially profitable, rentable properties) was split in May 2009. As a result, after 680 objects were assigned to the city and 424 to federal authorities, at the end of May 2009 Saint Petersburg had only 13 listed buildings, all former churches, including
Saint Isaac's Cathedral Saint Isaac's Cathedral () is a large architectural landmark cathedral that currently functions as a museum with occasional church services in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is dedicated to Saint Isaac of Dalmatia, a patron saint of Peter the Gre ...
and
Church of the Savior on Blood The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood (, ''Tserkovʹ Spasa na Krovi'') is a Russian Orthodox church in Saint Petersburg, Russia which currently functions as a secular museum and church at the same time. The structure was constructed between ...
. in legal
limbo The unofficial term Limbo (, or , referring to the edge of Hell) is the afterlife condition in medieval Catholic theology, of those who die in original sin without being assigned to the Hell of the Damned. However, it has become the gene ...
. The city has over 3,000 "newly found" historical buildings on the waiting list of local heritage commission; they will be either listed or demolished. Moscow, as of July 2009, has around 2,500 historical buildings waiting for inclusion into the heritage register, including five buildings by
Fyodor Schechtel Fyodor Osipovich Schechtel (; – July 7, 1926) was a Russian architect, graphic artist and stage designer, the most influential and prolific master of Russian Art Nouveau and late Russian Revival architecture. Baptised as Franz Albert Schech ...
and St. Andrew's Anglican Church. Around 500 buildings on this list are expected to be denied protection of any kind.


Recognition of modernist architecture

Addition of yet unlisted
avantgarde In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable t ...
buildings to the register remains controversial. Western authors noted that preservation of these buildings has a very narrow support base, limited to architects' heirs and selected
intelligentsia The intelligentsia is a status class composed of the university-educated people of a society who engage in the complex mental labours by which they critique, shape, and lead in the politics, policies, and culture of their society; as such, the i ...
; the general public identifies the bulk of avant-garde architecture with the bland Soviet industrial past, and as devoid of Russian national character. According to Anna Bronovitskaya, "Modernist
aesthetics Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste (sociology), taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Ph ...
have never recovered from Stalin's denouncement... the public remains very conservative in its tastes." Russian restorers have no experience in handling concrete structures, making restoration itself a threat to their survival, unless the investor hires German restorers. Prejudice against real or perceived poor construction quality of the
interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...
favors radical rebuilding initiatives. As a result, far more avant-garde buildings perished in modern Russia than in socialist Soviet Union; the art of the 20th century "have proved to be the most vulnerable and poorly defended". Moscow Heritage Commission is split on the heritage value of mainstream constructivist and rationalist architecture. Moscow Mayor
Yury Luzhkov Yury Mikhailovich Luzhkov ( rus, Юрий Михайлович Лужков, p=ˈjʉrʲɪj mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ lʊˈʂkof; 1936 – 10 December 2019) was a Russian politician who served as mayor of Moscow from 1992 to 2010. Before the elect ...
denounced the "flat-faced architecture"; the city's chief architect has spoken against preservation of functional midrise housing built in the 1920s and 1930s, saying, "they are doomed"; some of these blocks have been condemned for demolition. Nevertheless, in 2008 Moscow listed 114 "newly identified" buildings of this period.


Footnotes


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


External links

{{commons category, Cultural heritage monuments in Russia
Cultural heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by socie ...
.Cultural heritage
cultural heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by socie ...
Heritage Heritage may refer to: History and society * A heritage asset A heritage asset is an item which has value because of its contribution to a nation's society, knowledge and/or culture. Such items are usually physical assets, but some countries also ...
cultural heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by socie ...
2002 establishments in Russia Law of Russia