Kolomenskoye turns 100 years old. Let us dive into the history of the Museum-Reserve

On February 10, the Kolomenskoye Integrated Museum-Reserve celebrates 100 years of its existence. The starting point was a document issued on February 10, 1923. It was a mandate appointing Pyotr Baranovsky, a restoration architect, the architectural landmark manager of the former Royal country residence. Read on to learn about changes that Kolomenskoye went through in 100 years.

Before the Museum

The first mentions of Kolomenskoye can be found in wills written by Ivan Kalita, Prince of Muscovy, in 1336 and 1339. After Kalita’s death, the estate was inherited by his grandson, Prince Vladimir of Serpukhov, Dmitry Donskoy’s cousin. Kolomenskoye was where they welcomed the army returning home after the victory at Kulikovo field. The Holy Ascension Church (on the UNESCO World Heritage List) and the Church of St. George Victorious were built in the 16 th century; the wooden Palace of Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov and the Church of Our Lady of Kazan Icon-in the 17 th century.

Tsar Alexey enjoyed spending his summers there. In the 17 th century, Kolomenskoye was surrounded by villages populated by serfs who cared for the Tsar’s residence. Later, young Peter was a habitual visitor there: the future Tsar used the estate grounds to stage mock battles with his “toy troops”, the first prototype for the Russian professional army.

The property was growing and changing with time. Each Tsar was bringing something new to Kolomenskoye. 100 years after the wooden palace construction, it became decrepit, and Catherine the Great ordered it demolished and a new one built in another location, building its foundation and ground floors of stone. Catherine’s palace was rebuilt again in 1825 following a design by architect Eugraph Tyurin.

In the early 20 th century, Kolomenskoye turned into a local center of religious worship: four churches functioned there. After the 1917 Revolution, the estate was nationalized, the churches closed down and, like many other places of worship in that time, they were constantly threatened with being demolished.

A very important paper

Pyotr Baranovsky, a renowned restoration architect, fought for Kolomenskoye tooth and nail. He insisted they consider the churches not places of worship, but cultural heritage of our history.

Pyotr Baranovsky’s approach to restoration was broad and comprehensive; he viewed each landmark as a culture and history medium. He was the first to notice that the forms of the 16 th century Church of Beheading of St. John the Baptist in the neighboring Dyakovo closely resembles the Red Square St. Basil’s Cathedral. Baranovsky advocated turning the entire area into a museum and preserving historical landmarks of Kolomenskoye that invoked many events and personalities in the Russian history. Pyotr Baranovsky’s mandate appointing him the manager of architectural landmarks in Kolomenskoye and Dyakovo was issued on February 10, 1923. Soon after, the Museum became a branch of St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow.

Pyort Baranovsky ensured that anti-damage and restoration measures were taken in the Church of Beheading of St. John the Baptist, the Holy Ascension Church, the St. George’s Belltower and the Front and Savior Gate Under his leadership, they launched the first ever open-air wooden architecture museum in Russia. They transported some masterpieces of wooden architecture there: one of Nikolo-Korelsky Monastery towers (Arkhangelsk) and Mohovaya Tower from the Suma Stockaded Fort (Karelia). Together with the Bratsky Stockaded Fort tower and the Church of St. George Victorious, they now form the exposition of the modern Kolomenskoye museum of wooden architecture.

Masterpieces of wooden architecture. Exploring the open-air museum in Kolomenskoye

In 1934, cabin of Peter the Great was transported there from Arkhangelsk. Russian carpenters and Dutch shipbuilders erected it in 1702 in the estuary of North Dvina for the Emperor personally. Peter the Great lived there for two months in the summer. This is the only memorial museum focused on the Reformer Tsar in Moscow today.

Its collection has been forming gradually. In the 1920 s and 1930 s, when churches and monasteries were being closed and destroyed all around the country, the Museum staff took on the mission of rescue. They collected icon stands, libraries, glazed tiles as far as they were able to. Thanks to that, expositions focused on the art of ancient Moscow could be opened.

The archeology collections started forming at about the same time. The digs at Kolomenskoye conducted in 1930 s revealed that there were settlements on that land back in the Neolithic Age (4000–2000 B. C.). The Dyakovo settlement in its southern part (5000 B. C. -6000 A.D) was one of the oldest settlements in the modern Moscow area.

A museum on its own

During the Great Patriotic War, the Museum collection survived thanks to the staff’s heroic effort. Some exhibits were evacuated to Barnaul. Wooden structures were soaked in a fire-retardant agent to withstand bomb raids.

Even back in the first half of the 20 th century, the Museum staff were particularly mindful about preserving and maintaining their natural surroundings. Ancient oaks can be found in Kolomenskoye; some of them are over 600 years old.

In 1971, the Museum changed its name to Kolomenskoye State Museum-Reserve. Soon after, the preparation for the 1980 Summer Olympics started. The city authorities resolved to move the local residents of Kolomenskoye, Dyakovo and Sadovniki settlements from their wooden single-family homes to apartment blocks in the neighboring areas. At the same time, a comprehensive restoration of all Kolomenskoye landmarks took place; the main facilities got central heating and power supply.

The exposition rooms featured exhibitions focused on Russian history and art. The collections were stored in a special repository building, the first ever in Moscow.

The new century

Twenty years after the repository had been built, it was already too small for the ever-growing Museum collection. In the early 2000 s, the repository was reconstructed and got an extra floor on top. In 2007, Kolomenskoye was merged with another Royal estate, Izmaylovo, that reached its peak during Tsar Alexey Romanov’s reign. Now the Museum is called the Moscow State Integrated Museum-Reserve and includes both Kolomenskoye and Izmaylovo.

The wooden palace of Tsar Alexey Romanov was rebuilt in 2010: just as it used to be, following the technologies used in the 17 th century, but mindful of the modern safety requirements. To preserve the original foundation, the reconstructed palace was moved to the former Dyakovo village. The Royal interiors of that time were recreated inside: Tsar’s chambers, Princes’ chambers, along with Tsarina’s chambers. Beside the historical interiors, the palace now holds the rooms that host children’s activities, creative master-classes and music shows.

Kolomenskoye’s 100 th anniversary will be celebrated for the entire 2023. All the events planned for that period are associated with that date in some way or other, be it guided tours on foot or on bikes, or exhibitions. Kolomenskoye-100, a two volume publication prepared specially for that occasion, tells the Museum history in detail for the first time. It is a collection of essays written by the Museum curators, historians and art historians about the place itself, its collection and the people who worked or work there.