The first museum in Russia: history of creation. History of the emergence and development of museums History of the emergence and development of the museum

The oldest museum in Moscow is the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin. Its first public exposition was opened in 1816.The Armory received the status of a museum during the reign of Emperor Alexander I in 1806.

The collection of the Armory Museum took place over the course of several centuries. It was based on the treasures kept since the time of Ivan III in the stone building and the cellars of the Kazenny Dvor, located between the Annunciation and Archangel cathedrals of the Moscow Kremlin. Here the treasures accountable to them were kept by several departments: the order of the Great Treasury, which was in charge of the sovereign's treasury and finances, the Armory Order, which was engaged in the manufacture of weapons, the Stables Office, which was in charge of the royal carriages and the Workshops of the sovereign and queen, which made valuable things for the royal household.

Treasury courtyard in the Kremlin (see the building with a green hipped roof between the cathedrals)

From the "Book of the election to the kingdom of the great sovereign, tsar and grand duke Mikhail Fedorovich".

Miniature 1672-73 Fragment

Each department kept its treasury in the hotel chambers. The Armory Chamber was called the Armory, and the workshops were called the Workshop Chamber. Peter I united all these departments into one, giving him the name of the Workshops and the Armory, and created a special presence for him, subordinate to the Senate.

The relocation of the capital to St. Petersburg led to a deterioration in the preservation conditions for the collection of the Workshops and the Armory. In 1737 the Kazenny Dvor burned down, some of the valuable items perished, what remained was transferred to the Terem Palace of the Moscow Kremlin.

Under Emperor Alexander I, in order to preserve the collected treasures, it was decided to revise the valuables and create proper conditions for their storage and display to the public. For this purpose, on March 10, 1806, Alexander I issued a special decree “ On the rules of management and preservation in order and integrity in the Workshop and the Armory of valuables”, According to which the chamber (hereinafter we will call it simply the Armory) actually received the status of a museum institution.

According to the decree, it was forbidden to sell exhibits of the Armory without the special permission of the emperor. A staff was created to describe and store the collection, as well as those responsible for the search and return of previously issued "memorabilia".

Among the historians, collectors and connoisseurs of antiquity, honorary members were appointed, among whom were N.I. Karamzin, A.I.Musin-Pushkin, A.N. Olenin, etc. In 1807, one of the honorary members of the museum, A. .F. Malinovsky, the first catalog of exhibits was compiled - “ Historical description of the ancient Russian museum, under the name of the Workshop and the Armory in Moscow, which is being acquired ".

The head of the Armory was the head of the expedition of the Kremlin buildings (the head of the repair and construction of palace buildings), Privy Councilor Pyotr Stepanovich Valuev. In 1806, under his leadership, according to the project of the architect I.V. Egotov, on the site of the former palace of Boris Godunov, the construction of a two-story museum building began. The construction was basically completed by 1810. In 1812, finishing work was carried out, and the exhibits were being prepared for placement in the new building and the opening of the exposition. But these preparations were interrupted by the outbreak of the Patriotic War.

During the Patriotic War of 1812, the most important task for the staff of the Armory was to save the collection in view of the entry of Napoleon's troops into Moscow. The exhibits were packed and secretly taken to Nizhny Novgorod. In 1813 they were returned to Moscow without loss. Although many required restoration, drying and cleaning. Which took some time.
The first exposition of the Armory was opened to visitors in 1816. The head of the museum was then Nikolai Borisovich Yusupov, a member of the State Council, a well-known connoisseur of antiquities and collector, who headed the Armory in 1814 after the death of P.S. Valuev. The main exposition was located on the second floor, in rooms with high halls. There were, among other things, Monomakh's hat and other royal regalia, with which it was recommended to start viewing. The first low floor was occupied by the main entrance to the exhibition and archives.

Initially, the exposure was not limited. But with the growing interest in the Armory, with the increase in the number of visitors, there was a threat to the safety of the exhibits. In 1820 N.B. Yusupov was forced to limit visits, they began to be carried out with tickets twice a week.

It soon became clear that the original building of the museum was not entirely suitable for storing the collection. For fear of possible fires, the building was not heated and was damp. In this regard, in 1844-1851, it was decided to build a new building for the Armory, more suitable for a museum. The author of the project was the architect Konstantin Ton, who also designed the Grand Kremlin Palace. The collection is still in this building.

The old building of the Armory after the restructuring in 1852-1855 became a barracks, lost its dome and external decor. In Soviet times, it was used as a hostel for Latvian riflemen, employees of the Council of People's Commissars (the government of the USSR), providing apartments for responsible workers.
In 1959, under the pretext of freeing up space for the construction of the Palace of Congresses, the building was demolished.

P The first museum in Russia appeared in St. Petersburg and was founded by Peter I.
He got this idea on when he visited England and Holland. The tsar became very interested in innovations in the form of a cabinet of "kunshts" ("kunsht" is a rarity, a miracle). Peter strazu decided to organize a similar office in his brainchild - Petersburg.

He immediately acquired the first exhibits, which later became the inhabitants of the "sovereign's Cabinet".

By order of the tsar, the Kunstkamera was located in the Summer Palace. The birthday of the first museum is January 31, 1714. Collections grew, from all parts of Russia and from abroad, various curiosities flocked to the museum.

In February 1718, Alexander Vasilyevich Kikin was arrested for participating in the conspiracy of Tsarevich Alexei. After interrogation, Kikin was driven on the wheel, and his mansion, the famous Kikin chambers on Shpalernaya Street, passed into the state treasury, and the outlandish exhibits moved there.

In order to raise funds to replenish the collection, the Prosecutor General of the Senate Pavel Ivanovich Yaguzhinsky suggested taking an entrance fee from visitors. Peter did not like the idea, the people of St. Petersburg were afraid to go to the Kunstkamera anyway.

And Peter listened ... and did the opposite: to attract visitors, he ordered everyone to be treated to tea, coffee or vodka, and to give a sandwich for a snack and the visitors poured down ...)))))

Soon, the museum became cramped in the Kikin chambers, and a new special building had to be laid for it. According to the legend, this was not without a tsar - a reformer.

Once, walking along Vasilievsky Island (approximately as on the left in the photo), Peter saw a rare pine tree, whose branch again grew into the trunk, forming a semicircle. "That's a monster tree!" - exclaimed admiring Peter and ordered to save the pine, cut down the pine, and in its place he planned to lay a new building for the Kunstkamera ... in Russia everything was always difficult, especially with the preservation of rarities ...

In 1718 the king ordered the architect Mattarnovi to design a new building. Other architects such as Gerbel, Zemtsov and Chiaveri also took part in the construction of the Petrovskaya Kunstkamera.

The construction took a long time, Peter himself died before its completion. But the result exceeded all expectations: there was no more beautiful and majestic museum in Europe and in the world at that time.

In addition, the uniqueness of the project is that until now there was no need for major repairs. The building on Vasilievsky Island consisted of two three-storey Baroque buildings with an intricate dome. The eastern part houses the museum's collections. The Anatomical Theater occupied the middle part. The Academy of Sciences is located in the west wing, and the observatory is in the tower.

And what is not there - exotic costumes, rarities, "monsters" in cans ... alcohol-treated babies can cause nausea ... not recommended for visiting before the birth of children.

In the collection of the Kunstkamera there are teeth pulled out personally by Peter the Great, a great master of dentistry. It is believed that two of the teeth in this collection belonged to his son, Tsarevich Alexei. While the father was removing the aching tooth, Alexei screamed violently. To educate his child's character, Peter the Great pulled out his second, completely healthy tooth ... probably helped ...

When I go there (which is not often, alas) I always joke with two skeletons (large and small). I say that this is the skeleton of Peter I after death, and next to him is his skeleton in childhood. Almost always it rolls and does not cause surprise. Once I joked like that and heard the voice of my grandmother - the attendant of the hall, who strictly corrected that it was not Peter's skeleton. We laughed, but she could not understand why ...

There is also a mysticism, just connected with the giant ... they say that the headless ghost of Peter the Great's bodyguard is wandering around the Kunstkamera at night.

Peter hired Nicolas Bourgeois, whose height was 2 m 27 cm at a fair in France. The giant did not live in Russia for long. After the death of Bourgeois, in accordance with the contract, his skeleton and heart were exhibited in the Kunstkamera (oh, how Peter thought of everything). The skull was destroyed in a fire in 1747, but other bones have survived. Instead of the lost one, another skull was found, approximately suitable in size, but the ghost continues to wander in search of its head.

Infa and part of the photo (C) Internet

The Museum of Moscow is one of the oldest in the city; in 2016 it celebrated its 120th anniversary. Over the years, the museum has changed its place of residence, its name several times, but the interest in the city, its history and modernity has remained unchanged.

The museum was created in 1896 at the initiative of the Moscow Duma as the Museum of Urban Economy, and is housed in the Krestovsky water towers. The exposition is based on materials from the Moscow pavilion at the All-Russian Art and Industry Exhibition in Nizhny Novgorod.

In 1920, the museum was renamed the Moscow Communal Museum, and in 1926 it moved to the Sukharev Tower. Built at the end of the 17th century according to the project of Mikhail Choglokov, the tower was an outstanding architectural monument, and the move to the museum tower was a great event for all Moscow scholars and residents who are not indifferent to the history of their city.

After the demolition of the Sukharev Tower in 1935, the museum moved again, this time to the building of the Church of St. John the Evangelist near Elm on New Square. In the 1930s, the main theme of the exposition was the reconstruction of the capital according to the General Plan of 1935. And in 1947, on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of Moscow, a permanent exhibition dedicated to the history of the city was opened. In 1986, the name was changed again - to the Museum of the History of Moscow.

In 2009, it was decided to transfer the buildings of the Provision Warehouses on Zubovsky Boulevard to the museum to create a modern city museum in them. Together with the new address, the museum received a new name, which best reflects the breadth of its interests and role in the city - the Museum of Moscow. Around the museum, an association with the same name was created, which included several museums that tell differently about the history and culture of Moscow.

The names of some Russian museums are known to every inhabitant of our country. This is the Hermitage, the Tretyakov Gallery, and the Kunstkamera. It is the latter institution that is the first museum in Russia.

Great Embassy of Peter I

Peter I went down in Russian history as a reformer of everything and everyone. It was he who founded the first museum in Russia. In 1698 he was the first of our monarchs to be in Europe. At the same time, he traveled to Western countries as part of the Grand Embassy anonymously, so as not to draw attention to his person.

It was during his European voyage that Peter I first thought about creating his own museum. At that time, such institutions were created with the support of sovereigns. For example, numerous German princes maintained their own "cabinet of rarities", which kept curiosities from all over the world. In their language, such premises were called the Kunstkamera. Peter often copied the European in his own country. Therefore, the first museum in Russia was called exactly the same - the Kunstkamera.

The tsar was most impressed by Holland and England with their modern industries. In these countries, without being greedy, he bought a variety of items - books, scientific instruments, minerals, weapons. All this was supposed to form the basis of the exposition, which would be kept by the first museum in Russia.

Foundation of the Kunstkamera

After returning to his homeland, Peter I did not forget about his idea. A few years later, he recaptured the Baltic coast from the Swedes. It was here that St. Petersburg was founded, where the capital was soon moved. The tsar wanted the Kunstkamera to work in 1714, his collection of rarities was transported in This year is considered the date of the founding of the Kunstkamera. Prior to that, the exhibits were stored in Moscow, in the premises of the Pharmaceutical Chancellery.

The first museum in the history of Russia was gradually filled with new exhibits. The very next year, Petr Alekseevich set off on his second trip to Europe. In Holland, the king visited the famous Museum of Albert Seba. This pharmacist has collected various minerals, plants and shells throughout his life. He sold to the famous guest most of his zoological collection, which was soon taken over by the first museum in Russia.

New building for the museum

Due to the fact that the number of exhibits was steadily growing, it was decided to move the Kunstkamera to a new, specially built building for it. The construction was laid in 1718. Many architects worked on the project, each of whom became a leader at a certain stage. They were: Georg Johann Mattarnovi, Nikolai Gerbel, and Mikhail Zemtsov.

Construction proceeded very slowly, and Peter never saw his brainchild. He died in 1725, when bare walls still stood on the site of the Kunstkamera. The modern building was opened later. This happened in 1734. This building is still in operation today (located on the University Embankment). It was made in the style In a similar spirit, all the first buildings of the new capital were built, when they tried to give it a truly European look.

Prior to that, the very first museum in Russia was housed in the temporary Kikin chambers. It was here that it was first opened to the public.

Institutional budget

It was a large two-story building, which, however, was not enough to house all the exhibitions. The new museum did not have a permanent budget, but it received subsidies from the Salt Office and the Medical Office. The latter gave out wages to employees. They monitored the safety of the exhibits, as well as the replenishment of the collection.

It is curious that in 1724 Peter personally ordered to give out 400 rubles annually for treats for visitors. If we compare the Kunstkamera with other museums in Europe at that time, then we will see the opposite picture. For example, in Dresden, such a "cabinet of rarities" existed by collecting fees from visitors. The Ashmole Museum in Oxford, England, functioned in the same way for the "tip".

Museum objectives

The first museum in Russia was opened not to enrich itself, but precisely to educate the lazy Petersburg public. Many noblemen showed no interest in science, which Peter did not like very much. He hoped that at least free treats for the first time would stir up interest in the outlandish phenomenon. Of course, the Kunstkamera was not his only measure to educate those around him. Suffice it to mention that it was under him that the first regular Russian newspaper appeared in the capital. At the same time, new schools were opened in Moscow, where foreign specialists were invited. What is the first museum in Russia? Of course, which since that time has become the scientific center not only of St. Petersburg, but of the entire country.

Search for exhibits in Russian provinces

The creation of the Academy of Sciences was an important event. This happened in 1724. At the same time, the Kunstkamera came under the auspices of a new institution. The building of the first Russian museum is a modern symbol of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

If the first collections of the Kunstkamera were exclusively foreign, then over time they began to be "diluted" with domestic exhibits. Even before moving to St. Petersburg, Peter issued a decree according to which the Moscow Surgical School collected an anatomical compilation for him.

Peter also tried to establish a regular collection of curiosities in the provinces. In 1717, he sent an order to the Voronezh commandant Stepan Kolychev, in which he ordered to catch the "animals from the register" necessary for the museum. In the same way, the Siberian governor Gagarin had to send shells to Petersburg.

Scientific expeditions

In the last years of his life, Peter I was especially interested in geological, zoological, historical, archaeological and bibliographic materials. The founding of the first museum in Russia coincided with the organization of many expeditions to the East. Many of them went in search of minerals necessary for the growth of domestic industry. The Urals, the "Stone Belt" of the country, have become especially valuable in this sense. Geodetic works were also carried out on the shores of the Baltic, Caspian, Black and Azov seas.

In 1716-1718. not far from Astrakhan, many gold and silver items of antiquity were discovered. Peter I (the one who opened the first museum in Russia) was extremely interested in these finds. They were sent to Petersburg. It was a sacrificial utensil that remained at the mouth of the Volga from pagan times.

Siberian expedition Messerschmidt

The expedition of Daniel Messerschmidt was of great importance for the Kunstkamera in the first years of its work. This German botanist and physician was sent by Peter to Siberia in order, first of all, to collect many unique exhibits for the "tsar's office". The Emperor (the one who opened the first museum in Russia) was well aware of the importance of Siberian rarities and felt that without them the Kunstkamera would be incomplete.

Messerschmidt not only collected rarities, but also described the life and languages ​​of the indigenous peoples of these regions. The German scientist received from local residents a large number of shot birds and animals, which he later brought to St. Petersburg. During the trip, Messerschmidt visited a variety of cities: Tomsk, Tobolsk, Abakan, Kuznetsk, Turukhansk, Tyumen, etc.

Thanks to his efforts, significant materials on ethnography, writing and visual arts of the peoples of the East appeared in the Kunstkamera. These were Mongolian tribes, Chinese and other Siberian peoples. To assess the value and importance of the finds, a special commission was assembled. All travel expenses were paid to Messerschmidt. Also, many facts about the exhibits in his homeland were taken from him.

The value of the Kunstkamera

Largely thanks to the Kunstkamera, St. Petersburg became the scientific capital of the country. The first private museum in Russia also appeared here. Many wealthy nobles began to collect their own collections, which they displayed publicly in special rooms.

The Kunstkamera itself today is an anthropological museum, which every day collects a huge number of curious public. He received the name of Peter I as a sign of his great services to national science.

The Kunstkamera is the first museum opened by Peter the Great and is called Anthropology and Ethnography. Peter the Great, there are collections of rare works of human activity and natural exhibits. The museum's collection includes over a million expositions revealing the ethnographic and historical characteristics of the peoples of the world.

Thematic exhibits are dedicated to the countries of Africa and Asia and North America, the Middle and Near East. The bulk of the items collected in the Kunstkamera reveal the main features of the life of the peoples of the above-mentioned corners of the world. The greatest interest among tourists is a collection of rarities and anatomical anomalies, therefore many associate the Kunstkamera with the museum of "freaks".

The Kunstkamera is located in the center of St. Petersburg, on Universitetskaya embankment, near the arrow of Vasilyevsky Island, the museum is a 15-minute walk from the Admiralteyskaya metro station, 30 minutes from the Vasileostrovskaya station.

The cost of a ticket to the museum is:

• RUB 200 for adults,
• RUB 50 for kids,

Opening hours - from 11.00 to 18.00 every day except Monday.

Museum history

The museum was founded by Peter the Great, it all started with the overseas offices of the "kunst", which the tsar visited during his trips to Europe. He bought and brought to Russia entire collections and individual rare items. The date of foundation of the museum is considered to be 1714.., when the first exhibits of the collection were placed in the Summer Palace in not yet rebuilt St. Petersburg.

In 1718, a decree was issued, according to which all animals, plants, skeletal fragments, stones, trees, weapons, as well as items with ancient inscriptions were to be handed over to the museum. Soon, the area of ​​the premises was not enough to accommodate all the items, after which the museum was moved to the former residence of the disgraced nobleman - Kikin's chambers, and the exhibits of the royal collection became available for public viewing.

It is worth noting that even then visiting museums in Europe was paid, but Peter believed that money should not be taken from those who thirst for knowledge, on the contrary, 400 rubles were allocated from the treasury annually. for treating visitors with tea and vodka.

In the first chambers of the museum, one could see skillfully dissected heads of children, individual parts of the human body that have any deviations from the norm. All exhibits were housed in glass jars from the collections of the Dutch anatomist Ruysch.

Herbariums and boxes with butterflies, shells and animals were kept in two cabinets. The next room contained anatomical specimens at various stages of development, as well as lizards, stuffed elephants and monsters. The other three rooms contained collections of animals and birds, amber and many other amazing exhibits. Medals and coins were displayed in the "Munz-cabinet". The exhibition also featured dwarfs and freak people.

In 1718, under the leadership of the architect Mattarnovi, the construction of a new building "Chambers" began by 1725, which was completed only after the death of Peter.

Museum collection

The modern Kunstkamera is very different from the first museum, for 300 years something has been lost, many items burned down in the fire of 1747, and many new exhibits have also appeared, collected from all over the world. The very first exhibits of the Kunkstakmera, brought back by Peter, have also survived.

The museum presents the richest collections reflecting the life and traditional culture of indigenous people from different parts of the world. The entire museum is divided into several rooms, each of which is dedicated to a continent or part of the world:

• North America,
• Oceania,
• China
• Mongolia,
• India
• Indonesia,
• Australia.

In the hall dedicated to India and Indonesia, the largest number of exhibits is presented; here you can look at carved wood, various masks, puppet theater puppets, old theatrical costumes. In the Indonesian section, the kris daggers made in the form of fire may be of interest.

The hall of the North American continent is dedicated to the life and culture of its indigenous peoples - Indians, Aleuts and Eskimos. Of great interest to visitors are the compositions of the ritual dance to call the rain, the treatment of the sick by the shaman, etc.

Anatomical section

This room contains natural rarities and exhibits with anatomical abnormalities, here you can see:

• on Siamese twins,
• two-headed calf,
• sirenomelia,
• baby with cyclopia, etc.

The core of the exposition is the collection of the Dutch anatomist Frederic Ruysch, which consisted of over 2,000 exhibits and was sold to Peter in 1717 for 30,000 guilders. With this money at that time it was possible to build and equip 2 frigates.

The Kunstkamera was very popular among the residents of the city, many exhibits were overgrown with legends. One of them says about the alcoholized head of Mary Hamilton, who was executed during the reign of Peter. Once the flask with the exhibit was opened, the head disappeared, and the alcohol was used as intended. The museum staff asked for assistance from the sailors of the ship standing in front of the ship; a year later, upon returning from a sea voyage, the sailors brought three Basmachi heads to replace the missing head of the English lady.

Another legend says about Nicholas Bourgeois, who was brought from France by Peter in 1717. The giant's height reached 2 meters 30 cm, after death the skeleton became an exhibit of the Kunstkamera, during the fire of 1747 the skull disappeared, which was replaced by another one of a suitable size. According to legend, since then the skeleton has been walking around the museum in search of its head.

It cannot be mentioned that in the period 1741-1765 Mikhail Lomonosov worked in the tower of the building, founder of the Academy of Sciences and the first Russian university. The first planetarium appeared in the tower, an astronomical observatory was in operation. It was during these years that the most destructive fire fell, as a result of which the entire building was destroyed by fire, part of the exhibits burned down. Over time, the building was completely restored, and the curiosities were replaced by others.

All progressive personalities and scientists of those times knew about the Kunstkamera, the exhibits for the museum were supplied by famous travelers and discoverers F.F. Bellingshausen, D. Cook, N.N. Miklouho-Maclay and many others.

Already in 1800 in the Kunstkamera there were about 2 million exhibits from all over the world, the collection consisted of 250,000 ethnographic, 380,000 anthropological and 500,000 archaeological objects.