Tula is an old and interesting city for tourists in the European part of Russia. It is often called the weapons, samovar or gingerbread capital. But this city surprises not only with samovars and gingerbread cookies, but also with its monuments. Tula boasts dozens of different sculptures - from comic sculptures to quite serious monuments. We will tell you about the most interesting objects in this article.
Monuments of Tula: description and list
The city is decorated with numerous monuments and sculptures. Some of them are dedicated to individuals, others to specific historical dates, and others to famous urban symbols. A number of Tula monuments are associated with the sad and at the same time heroic events of the Great Patriotic War.
The Soviet era left a noticeable mark in the architectural appearance of the city. The most famous monuments of Tula of this time period:
- V.I. Lenin.
- "Tulak - Heroes of the Soviet Union."
- Monument "Three bayonets."
- Vsevolod Rudnev.
- V.V. Veresaev.
- L. N. Tolstoy.
- Karl Marx.
Two monuments of the pre-revolutionary period were preserved in the city: Alexander Pushkin (1899) and Peter the Great (1912). Both were designed by a single sculptor - Robert Bach.
It is worth listing the modern monuments of the city of Tula, because some of them are popular tourist attractions. The most famous sculptures installed after 1991:
- "Tula gingerbread."
- Nikita Demidov.
- Peter and Fevronia.
- "Tula Tea Party".
- "Mushroom glade."
- Monument to the Lefthander.
- Monument to Mother-in-law.
It is worth mentioning the lost monuments of Tula. So, once the city was adorned: a statue dedicated to the outstanding biologist Ivan Pavlov, an original sculptural group called “My Non-Black Earth Region”, as well as a majestic monument to Labor and Defense.
"Tula gingerbread"
The most popular (judging by the number of photos present on the network) monument in Tula is a bronze sculpture dedicated to the local delicacy famous throughout the country. It was opened in 2014 on the central Lenin Square (near the Wedding Palace). With its not very large dimensions (diameter - two meters), the Tula Gingerbread has a rather impressive weight - about 1300 kg. To come to Tula and not to take pictures with this monument is a true sin for any tourist!
Monument to Pushkin
The great Russian poet, according to historians, has never been to Tula. At least, there is no documentary evidence of his stay in the "gingerbread" gingerbread. Nevertheless, the oldest monument in Tula is dedicated specifically to Alexander Sergeyevich.
This, however, is not a monument in the traditional sense, but just a tiny bust. It was installed back in 1899 in Pushkin Square. The bust, by the way, is typical. For example, a similar statue adorns the Ukrainian capital. In 1999, Tula Pushkin was slightly restored, removing several layers of long-term paint from the bust.
Tula Ilyich
The main square of the city is traditionally decorated with a monument to the leader of the world proletariat. The monument to Vladimir Ilyich Lenin in Tula appeared in 1983. Its authors were sculptor Mikhail Zakharov, architect Evgeny Rozanov and engineer Dmitry Leontyev. The total height of the monument is nine meters. Tula Lenin is unique in that it does not show the Tula the path to a bright communist future. The leader’s hands are tightly pressed to his hips. Thanks to this, the sculpture looks more humane and not so propaganda.
The Three Bayonets Monument
We will get acquainted with another beautiful monument of the Soviet era. This is a monument to the “Heroic Defenders of the City of Tula”, erected in 1968 on Victory Square. Its popular name is Three Bayonets.
The architects N. N. Milovidov, G. E. Saevich and B. I. Dyuzhev worked on the creation of the sculptural ensemble. The monument is located in the southern part of Lenin Avenue. The ensemble includes sculptures of a soldier and a worker, 13 granite stelae dedicated to Soviet hero cities, as well as three obelisks in the form of weapon bayonets. They have a trihedral shape and sheathed in brilliant stainless steel. Their height is different: 31, 41 and 51 meters. At the base of the bayonets, the Eternal Flame is constantly burning.
Monument to the Lefthander
On Sovetskaya Street, you can see a monument to the famous literary hero Levsha, invented by the writer Nikolai Leskov. It symbolizes the talent and skill of Tula craftsmen. A lefty is standing on a small hexagonal pedestal and, squinting his eyes, looks at a flea he has just savvy. On each of the six faces of the base of the monument are quotes from the works of the writer.
Monument to Mother-in-law
Another unusual monument of Tula is located on Oktyabrskaya Street, at the entrance to the exotarium. Initially, it bore a different name - “Tula dinosaur” (to be more precise, it is a bloodthirsty tyrannosaurus). But witty locals nicknamed the sculpture a monument to Mother-in-law. There is a funny tradition in Tula: newly-made husbands will certainly lay flowers at the feet of a dinosaur in order to appease their grumpy mother-in-law.