On the left bank of the Volga is a small, but very cozy and green town - Engels (until 1931 - Pokrovsk). It is the second most populous in the Saratov region. The city has a long and interesting history, many attractions and interesting places that you must visit. But getting to know the city is better to start with the local history museum, which contains interesting exhibits, photos, documents telling about the history and development of Engels.
Museum History
The Museum of Local Lore (Engels) was founded in July 1925, after an official decision was made to create a republican museum of the Volga Germans. The museum’s first director, a talented and well-known linguist, professor at the University of Saratov, ethnographer G. G. Dinges came up with the initiative to create this institution.
Already in the first years of the museum's existence, a collection of clothing, household items of the German population of the republic, priceless manuscripts related to the history of foreign colonies, documents on archeology and ethnography were collected. Museum staff conducted active research activities.
In August 1941, as you know, the Volga Germans Republic was liquidated, and the museum was closed. The exhibits were transferred to various organizations for storage and, unfortunately, many of them were irretrievably lost. The museum was revived after the war, but it received a different status - the museum of local lore. Engels was gradually recovering from the war, and the museum was replenished with new exhibits.
In 1960, the museum was headed by Evdokia Alexandrovna Bozhenko, who in her work took a course towards the creation of a museum that would be based on local history work. But to fully engage in classical museum work and the construction of institutions of the historical type, which he was in the 1920s. last century, succeeded only in the early 90's. XX century.
At this time, the museum, for the next, already the seventh, time was transferred to a new spacious and bright building in the city center (Engels). The museum of local lore under the leadership of the new director S. I. Spiridonova entered a new period of its development. Today it is one of the most sought after and visited cultural institutions of the city.
Engels: Museum of Local Lore Today
As we have already said, the museum is located in the very center of the city, at the address: st. Gorky, 4. The modern building is located on the banks of the Volga River near a picturesque park, promenade and city square. The modern interior, which is devoid of architectural excesses, bright spacious halls of the museum make it possible to feel the freedom of movement, to focus on the exposition.
With extensive exhibition and exhibition areas, the local history museum (Engels) does not limit itself to conditional restrictions and builds a model of a new museum that is adapted to modern life. In addition to the traditional expositions of museums of this type on the history of the city and the region, themed exhibitions of contemporary art are held here, literary associations work, conferences and festivals are held.
The museum is open to visitors daily from 10:00 to 17:00. Wednesday from 10:00 to 21:00. Monday is a day off.
Museum Collections
Currently, the Museum of Local Lore (Engels) has several fairly large collections of exhibits that are combined into groups. We will talk about some of them in more detail.
Archaeological
This is the largest collection of the museum, which brings together more than eight thousand exhibits. She talks about all periods of ancient history. The materials collected here testify to the existence of different cultures and civilizations of antiquity, which left a noticeable mark in history. Among them are the first stone tools dating back to the Paleolithic era, bronze cauldrons and spears.
Museum staff are especially proud of the golden collection of Huns, which includes jewelry made in various jewelry techniques. No less valuable are exhibits of the early Middle Ages.
Art collection
A feature of the city museum is its artistic direction. The collection collected here over many years reflects all the stages in the development of artistic life in the city of Engels. The Museum of Local Lore has the most valuable and largest collection of works by J. Weber in our country. The magnificent master of the Volga landscape and the unsurpassed painter of the first half of the last century left the true masterpieces to the descendants.
In addition to the paintings of Jacob Weber, the museum presents collections of many German artists - M. Hyde, V. Michaelis, R. Fink, E. Dorsch, Erlich and others. In the museum you can see the works of recognized masters - A. Kravchenko, A. Mylnikov, V. Zotov, R. Mertslin, A. Vasiliev, A. Govorov.
Book collection
Unfortunately, the library, as well as the scientific archive of the Volga Germans Museum, has been partially lost: only a small part of it has survived to this day. The collection of the book fund today has no more than three hundred copies: educational and scientific literature on history, archeology, ethnography, almanacs, rare editions of Russian writers and magazines. Here you can also see books from the libraries of many famous people of the past.
Weapon
This collection is the youngest in the museum. It began to be collected in the mid-twentieth century, when several copies of weapons from the Second World War were donated to the museum. Today this collection is still small - no more than 100 units, but it includes noteworthy items - weapons of the war of 1812, the Great Patriotic War and the First World War.
Based on these samples, one can judge the development of weaponry in our country, admire the skill of well-known and nameless authors who captured their knowledge and talent in metal. In addition to firearms, the blade is also represented in the collection.
Photomaterials
The city of Engels has a long and interesting history. The local history museum has a large collection of photographs. It demonstrates the features of the life of the Volga city from the 19th century to the present day. Of particular value are materials that capture the features of the culture of the Volga Germans.
Exhibitions
In the museum you can visit the exhibition, working on an ongoing basis. Among them:
- “The bridge of friendship. Engels-Wuppertal ”, dedicated to the cultural cooperation of cities.
- A lot of interesting materials were collected by the centenary of the First World War Museum of Local Lore (Engels). The exhibition "Faces of a Forgotten War" is of great interest to lovers of the history of our country.
- "Return to Life" - an exhibition dedicated to the history of the city's Missile School.
In addition, exhibitions of works by young artists are regularly held here, creative meetings are held with the authors. In February of this year, schoolchildren began to actively visit the Museum of Local Lore (Engels). Transforming robots, presented here as part of the opening Moscow show-exhibition "Rise of the Machines", attracted the general attention of young people.
The unusual exposition presents seventeen two-meter robots that are heroes of science fiction films and computer games. In order for the children to be able to look at them, excursions of schoolchildren to Engels were organized from neighboring cities. The museum of local lore (the phone by which applications are accepted, they will tell you in the administration), by prior arrangement, conducts tours of all expositions and exhibitions.
Reviews
Many visitors to the museum note its convenient location: in the city center, on the banks of the river. The museum today is in excellent condition, it is well maintained, the workers are very attentive and polite, and the guides are real professionals who love and know their job. That is why no one is bored on excursions.