Kolomenskoe

Kolomenskoye village is an ideal place for rest and sightseeing. 17 landmarks are situated on the beautifully decorated territory: 12 of them belong to a remaining part of tzar bowery of XVI-XIX c. and 4 of them are wooden buildings brought from different parts of Russia. Visitors can spend here hours wandering over the territory, enjoying the sight of Moscow river, sitting on benches surrounded by flowers, visiting excibitions or eating pankakes, buns or shashlik in various cafes. No wonder that lots of pairs come here in the day of marriage to make memorable photoes.

Kolomenskoye is situated on the road from Kolomna to Moscow. The village is known since 1237 when chan Batiy demolished Kolomna and several families moved from there to Moscow region. This place used to be dukes` and then tzars` estate.

The most ancient landmark, the Ascension church, is situated on a high bank of the Moscow-river. It was built by unknown architects under the reign of Bazil III in 1533. According to a legend it was made in honour of Ivan the Terrible`s birth. At first the terrace of the church was open, it was ruined and reconstructed many times, that`s why it was decided to make a roof. The roof changed the appearance of the building. The Ascension church was also used as a watchtower: in the case of invasion a signal by smoke or fire was made, which was seen from the Ivan the Great Bell Tower in Moscow. In 1994 the church was inscribed on the World Heritage List.The round Bell Tower, that stands nearby, was built in XVI century.

In the neighboring village Diakovo Ivan the Terrible had built the Church of St John the Baptist, probably in honour of his own coronation in 1547. The church is the prototype of Saint Basil's Cathedral on the Red Square and was admittedly constructed by the same architects.

Opposite the Ascension church we can see the Front gates of ex-stone wall (1671-1672).

Kolomenskoye was prosperous under the reign of Aleksey Mikhaylovich - it used to be his favourite residence. In 1667 a beautiful wooden palace with 270 rooms was constructed. The palace was surrounded by a fence and a garden with gates with clocks. The palace was demounted by Catherine the Great because of decay. Only the Church of Our Lady of Kazan (Kazanskaya church) survived. There an honorable icon of Our Lady "Derzhavnaya" can be found. Behind the church stand the Back Gates of the fence.The Catherine`s Palace was also demounted under Nikolaus I, only one flanker survived.

The museum exposition is situated in 2-storeyed building near the Front gates, in "Sitniy" palace. There the visitors can find art details of buildings: whitestone and wooden carving, forged products, bronze casting, ceramic ware.

In the 20-s of the 20th century a russian architect Baranovskiy began to create the first russian museum of wooden architecture in the open air. Some old wooden buildings were transported to Kolomenskoye from the Far North (the barbican church of the Nikolo-Korelsky Monastery), Siberia (the Bratsk Stockade Tower), and other areas (loghouses, windmills, a Dvina stone, etc). Some of these structures date back to the 17th century. In the House of Peter the Great an excibition reproducing tzar`s apartments of the beginning of XVIII century is located.

It is very easy to get to Kolomenskoye village, it is near "Kolomenskoye" metro station. The adress is: Prospect Andropova, 39. It is also possible to order excursions.