Balcony with Atlanteans and Princess Shakhovskaya's staircase: Pokrovskoye-Streshnevo estate to be restored

This year the manor house of the historical Pokrovskoye-Streshnevo estate will be finally restored. It is a two-story building dating from the 18 th century with a mezzanine, built of wood in the eclecticism style, and two adjoining red brick buildings, two- and three-storey, built in the 19 th century in the Russian Revival style.

The mansion is cultural heritage site of federal significance. Location: 52/1 Volokolamskoye Highway. The mansion has seen many owners come and go, remodeling, and several fires. In recent years, the house was closed and remained used. During the preparation phase, experts thoroughly surveyed the facility and concluded that it was in an unsatisfactory state.

“The building hasn’t been in use for a long time, it’s not connected to utilities, and some of the windows are broken. Previously, the central façades were repainted many times. Improper painting led to the destruction, peeling and flaking paint layers. The brick wing walls also require serious repair — much of the decor has been lost, joint mortar in many places crumbled, the brick under the cement is loose and covered in cracks. Judging by the damp brickwork, there is no waterproofing in the house. The white stone stairs on the façade facing the park are in disrepair. Unfortunately, the stone cladding, terrace, and balcony railings have been almost completely lost. There are traces of numerous leaks on the ceilings,” said Sergey Melnikov, Deputy Head of the Moscow Capital Repair Department.

Archival records, as well as extant historical analogs of the decoration and interior elements, will help restorers revive the past splendor of the estate. The project of restoration works is agreed upon in the Moscow Cultural Heritage Department. The restoration will be supervised by this Department.

Why save the monument

The mansion of the Pokrovskoye-Streshnevo estate was tremendously damaged in a fire of 1992. After that, they tried to restore the site, but for various reasons the work was never completed. Various institutions and organizations were in charge of the estate at various times. However, the resources were insufficient to fully restore it. There was also a more recent fire: a greenhouse burned down in 2017.

Today one can still notice the results of the interior restoration started almost 30 years ago and never finished. Then the partitions installed in the piano nobiles during Soviet times were dismantled, with the burned ceilings and their plaster mouldings, the White Hall plafond painting, and the colonnades recreated. At the same time, the restoration of the mosaic parquet began. Although new concrete ceilings were made in the brick outbuildings, the decoration once lost was never restored.

Recreated in the 1990s, today the rooms on the second floor in the central part of the house are dilapidated. There are no floors or doors and fire doors and marble fireplace coverings are broken. Plaster moudlings have been partially lost. Deformation of the ceilings above the first floor caused deep cracks on the walls, threatening the entire structure of the building. The mezzanine, which was practically rebuilt after the fire of 1992, has a latter-day floor plan and has nothing to do with the historical appearance.

The front marble staircase (brought from the townhouse of Princess Shakhovskaya-Glebova-Streshneva, one of the estate’s owners, in the 1910s) has survived but requires restoration. The steps are worn and cracked, and the bottom step is lost. The marble balusters and wide railing were completely destroyed. The two Atlantean figures on the sides of the stairs supporting the second-floor balcony also require restoration. The balcony railing has been lost completely.

What is to be done

In the course of repair and restoration work, the façade and plinth of the house will be cleared and restored to their integrity, with cracks and other defects in the brickwork eliminated. The damaged plaster mouldings will be cleared and supplemented, with the lost fragments recreated from extant samples.

Furthermore, the white-stone portions of the central façades will be cleaned up, and the crowning and inter-floor cornices will be repaired. The semi-rotunda terrace with a balustrade is also to be restored. It is located on the side of the façade facing the park. This terrace is decorated with Corinthian columns, and two semicircular staircases circling it lead to the garden. The two balconies on the façade of the house and their railings, as well as the inner balcony and the Atlantean figures supporting it, are going to be restored too.

Specialists will restore the arch of the semi-circular window in the mezzanine and the dormer windows, replace the roof, and return the tented roof towers. The walls and vaults in the interiors will be cleared of cement coating and layers of cladding and reinforced. They will also strengthen the ceiling and the structure of the front staircase, repair the marble steps, remove abrasions and patch up cracks.

Lost balustrades along the staircase and balcony will be recreated in the house. The decoration of the rooms on the first and second floors of the central part of the building, including the parquet in the grand halls, will be restored, with decorative elements recreated. Specialists will fix up glazed tile stoves and marble fireplaces with stove appliances. The central lobby will have Mettlach tile floors.

Interior finishing and decorations will be restored in the brick outbuildings.

The formal garden (with a clear geometric structure), the greenhouse building, and the historic alley that used to lead to the pond will be restored in the surrounding area.

The Pokrovskoye-Streshnevo estate house belonged to the Streshnev family for almost 250 years (since 1664). They were relatives of the ruling dynasty. In 1626, Michael of Russia married Eudoxia Streshneva. They had ten children, including the future Tsar Alexis of Russia.

The last owner of the estate was Princess Eugenia Shakhovskaya-Glebova-Streshneva, a famous philanthropist of the late 19th – early 20th centuries.

After the revolution, the estate was requisitioned to be turned into a health resort. In 1919, a museum was opened in the main house, where the environment of the lord's estate was recreated. The specifics of the museum exhibition were to show "the decline of noble culture during the age of serfdom decay." In 1927, the museum was closed. Then the building was used for various purposes: as a military hospital, a health resort, a research institute. The monument was managed by various organizations.

This year, specialists are restoring 526 projects. The buildings currently restored include the Variety Theatre, the Izmalkovo Estate, the Great Cathedral of the Donskoy Monastery and others.