The Sariyev House, or in full the Sariyev revenue house (russian: link=no, Доходный дом Сариевых) or Yemelyanov revenue house (russian: link=no, Доходный дом Емельянова) is an early 20th century building in the city of

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East Eu ...

. It was designed by architect Andrei Fyodorovich Nidermeyer in the

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

style, and belonged to the sisters Olga and Elena Sariyev. The house is located at 94

Bolshaya Sadovaya Street Bolshaya (Russian language for "big") may refer to: * Bolshaya, Arkhangelsk, a village * Bolshaya chistka, "Great Purge", the 1936–1938 Soviet purge * Bolshaya Izhora, an urban locality in the Lomonosovsky District of Leningrad Oblast * Bolshay ...

. Originally built as a

revenue house A revenue house is a type of multi-family residential house with specific architecture which evolved in Europe during 18th–19th centuries and became a precursor of what is now known as a rental apartment house and a tenement. In various Europea ...

, the Sariyev House has the status of an object of cultural heritage of regional significance.

History and description

The Sariyev House was built in the late Art Nouveau style, and completed in 1902 with features distinctive to the form that had developed in the city. These include the stone plastering details, namely rusticated granite

lesene A lesene, also called a pilaster strip, is an architectural term for a narrow, low-relief vertical pillar on a wall. It resembles a pilaster, but does not have a base or capital. It is typical in Lombardic and Rijnlandish architectural building s ...

s and prominent basement belts on the lower sections, and decorative

keystones A keystone (or capstone) is the wedge-shaped stone at the apex of a masonry arch or typically round-shaped one at the apex of a vault. In both cases it is the final piece placed during construction and locks all the stones into position, allo ...

of the first floor windows and upper windows. The building's design incorporated variants of a progressive approach to the structural scheme, which became widespread at the beginning of the 20th century. The building once housed a library named after

Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (russian: link=no, Алексе́й Макси́мович Пешко́в; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (russian: Макси́м Го́рький, link=no), was a Russian writer and social ...

, before renovations that converted the upper floors into residential apartments. A variety of commercial establishments have occupied the ground floor during the building's history. Prominent during the late Soviet period was the cafe "Shokoladnitsa", a name which came to be commonly applied to the entire building.

Present status

At present, the building is in critical condition with various structurally unsound cracks stretching the length of the

façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loan word from the French (), which means 'frontage' or ' face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important aspect ...

, historic carvings have eroded beyond the point of recognition, and much of the marble within the building has deteriorated. The building is currently fenced off and covered with scaffolding. A plan to privatize the municipal property was set out at the 42nd meeting of the City Duma, which envisaged the creation of five non-residential premises with a total area of 1399.8 sq. meters. The house was then put up for auction with the obligatory condition of repairing it and installing a commemorative plaque. It was sold for 62 million rubles to Garry Gevorkyan, but the sale fell through after Gevorkyan was denied a bank loan to buy the house. A serious fire broke out in the house on the night of 22-23 November 2020. The fire spread over 450 square meters, and took more than 20 hours to extinguish. Preliminary reports suggested the cause was "an external introduction", covering both arson and accidental causes. The Sariyev House was auctioned for the fourth time in September 2021, and was sold for 10 thousand rubles to

Taganrog Taganrog ( rus, Таганрог, p=təɡɐnˈrok) is a port city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, on the north shore of the Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov, several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don River. Population: History of Taganrog ...

resident Shushanik Mkrtchyan. As part of the sale she is required to develop a restoration project and carry out renovation work on the building.

References

{{reflist Tourist attractions in Rostov-on-Don Buildings and structures in Rostov-on-Don Cultural heritage monuments in Rostov-on-Don Art Nouveau architecture in Russia Residential buildings completed in 1902 Cultural heritage monuments of regional significance in Rostov Oblast