The city of Saratov has long been considered a city of trade to this day. The large number of markets and shopping centers in Saratov is a direct confirmation of this. Many trading places have been equipped recently. The main symbol of trading is the Saratov Indoor Market. This is a unique building, built more than a hundred years ago and serving its purpose to this day.
Saratov early twentieth century
Modern Square. Kirov at the end of the eighteenth century was called Drovyanaya. This is due to the fact that already at that very place there were trading radas where firewood, various logging and hay were sold. The second name of this square is Lesnaya. The market itself was called Mitrofanovsky. Near the shopping arcade was the Mitrofanov Church, which gave the name to the market.
Already at the end of the nineteenth century, a large bazaar was located on the site of the modern Covered Market in Saratov. In addition to trade in firewood and forest, vegetables and fruits, flour, grain, fish, salt, dairy products, livestock and much more began to be sold on the market.
A distinctive feature of the market of that period was that this area was surrounded by marshy swampy places, and a scaffold was placed next to the market itself. The constant dirt and slurry did not prevent the development of commercial business within the Wood Market, but they caused great concern of the authorities about the terrible unsanitary conditions that prevailed at that time in the bazaar. The dirt almost never dried out.
The first attempts to improve the market
Marshland promotes the multiplication and spread of pathogens of various intestinal diseases. Constant dampness and heat allow microorganisms to live and reproduce. To this are added food waste (rotting vegetables and fruits, sour dairy products and other garbage) that were thrown out near trading places. All this contributed to regular outbreaks of cholera and dysentery.
In order to get rid of the non-drying dirt, it was decided to fill the paths in the malls and in the vicinity of the market with stone - burdock. Lopunets is a local rock formation. Unfortunately, it quickly crumbled and turned into crumbs. The next step was attempts to pave the streets with cobblestones. But this did not solve the problem of dirt and diseases radically, although the slurry was noticeably reduced.
Market project
At the end of the nineteenth century, the city government had the idea to ennoble the spontaneous market and give it a civilized look, to create a shopping center in Saratov.
The project architect becomes V.A. Lyukshin. The market project was introduced in 1907 and adopted in 1910, but construction began later. First, various improvements were made to ventilation systems, heat supply systems and refrigeration equipment. V.A. Lyukshin participated in the development of bridge ceilings of the famous Trans-Siberian Railway. At that time, the market design was very bold and innovative. In the basement, refrigeration equipment was to be placed, and products in the malls were supposed to be delivered using electric elevators.
The lack of welding as such in those times made it impossible to erect a vault design using metal ceilings. But a solution was found: the installation of the frame was carried out using fasteners with bolts of large diameter. The glass dome is a kind of know-how of that time.
Construction of a covered market in Saratov
The construction of the market began in 1914. At that time, this project was quite ambitious. The building of the Covered Market in Saratov was considered the largest building in Russia using reinforced concrete floors between floors. And the market itself is one of the largest in Russia. During construction, huge winches were used.
It was planned to place shopping arcades on the first floor, shops, offices, kitchens and several residential apartments on the second. An interesting device was the mechanism for opening the valves in the dome of the building. The mechanism itself was located below.
A little less than one and a half million rubles were spent on building the market. The timely completion of construction was prevented by the First World War. The building was commissioned only in 1916.
Treasure of the market
Saratov indoor market stores treasure. This is the legend. So is it really or not, no one knows for sure. At the grand opening of the market, the spouse of the governor who ruled Saratov in those years, Princess Shirinskaya-Shikhmatova, in a fit of emotion after a solemn speech, removed a large ring from her finger. Following her example, many ladies of secular society donated their jewelry to the market. All jewelry was collected in a casket and walled up in a niche of the northern end of the building.
Architectural features
The covered market is located along the street. Chapaeva. The building has the shape of a rectangle and rises to two floors. The first contains a large number of trading places. Initially, they were planned three hundred. Today there are more of them. The ground floor mainly sells products. The center of the hall is decorated with a fountain with sculptures of two women, who, apparently, are engaged in agricultural work.
Initially, it was planned to finish the basement and internal walls of the first floor with Finnish granite. Unfortunately, the events of the First World War made their own financial adjustments. The decoration was done with decorative stone and plastered with marble chips. Military events left their mark on the functionality of the market: the basement floors were partially occupied by a military hospital. With wartime, it is also connected with the fact that the market indicated the year of completion of construction in 1915, but in fact the market was finished in 1916.
The main entrance to the market is decorated with statues of Atlantes that support the vault. The provincial coat of arms is also depicted above the main entrance. Cornucopia and ears of wheat are indispensable attributes of decorating shopping facilities. The walls of the market are decorated with bas-reliefs on the outside and inside. The building itself is very similar to the European markets of that period. At one time in Saratov there was an expression "go to Paris." This meant going exactly to this market. The second floor of the building is currently completely filled with trade pavilions, mainly with clothes and shoes.
Schedule of the indoor market
The covered market is located on the street. Chapaeva, house 59.
The official name is Trading Center Central. The market administration is located inside the building. 72 organizations are officially registered in the premises. Opening hours of the Covered Market in Saratov from 10.00 to 21.00.
The market is surrounded by malls with products and haberdashery. There are also several pavilions with clothes and underwear. The address of the Covered Market in Saratov is familiar to many. You can get to the pavilion from all over the city by public transport:
- fixed-route taxis No. 3, 8, 13, 21, 32, 59, 62, 79, 83, 94, 97, 99, 110;
- Buses Nos. 2, 6, 53, 90;
- trolleybuses No. 2, 2a, 15, 16; trams No. 3, 9, 10, 11.10;
- Trams Nos. 3, 9, 10, 11.