The pride of the Republic of Tatarstan and the entire Russian Federation, of course, are the museums of Kazan. The list of historical and modern complexes of the capital is striking in its versatility, huge collections and rarest specimens.
Museum ensembles of Kazan
In the capital of Tatarstan today there are about 40 state and private historical complexes. The largest multidisciplinary are considered the national and architectural museums of Kazan. The list of the main state complexes is presented by the following historical assemblies:
- Gallery "Hazine";
- National Museum;
- Center "Hermitage" and others.
Of the main cultural attractions of the city stands out the Museum of Fine Arts (Kazan). This complex is one of the ten most visited historical ensembles in Russia. However, the Kazan Kremlin’s architectural and art reserve, known far beyond the borders of Tatarstan, is a visiting card of the capital.
Among the branch museums of the city, one can distinguish the gallery of the history of the statehood of the Republic, as well as the assembly of natural history and the memorial complex of the Great Patriotic War. In recent years, exhibition halls of Islamic culture have become very popular.
University museums of Kazan are popular with connoisseurs of history and ethnology. This is the Stuckenberg Gallery of Geology, and the Zoological Assembly. Eversmann, and the botanical garden at the metropolitan university and many others. It will also be useful to highlight the exhibition hall of anatomy and the archeology museum of Kazan University.
Of the personal collections demanded by tourists are the Pinakothek K. Vasiliev, the apartment-memorial to Sharif Kamal, the house of V.I. Lenin, the gallery of literature of Leo Tolstoy and Alexei Gorky.
The historical ensemble "Kazan Kremlin"
This architectural complex is considered to be the main attraction of Tatarstan. It contains not only the national traditions of local residents, but also the identity of the entire Russian people.
Today, the ensemble includes such museums in Kazan (see photo below), such as the cannon yard, the Annunciation Cathedral, the Transfiguration Monastery, and the cadet school. The most popular among tourists and locals in the Kremlin are the Kul Sharif Mosque and the governor's hall. In total, the historical complex occupies about 1,500 square meters. m. One of the symbols of the Kazan Kremlin is the Syuyumbike tower.
However, the cultural reserves of the ensemble are not limited to this. They also include various history museums,
memorial complexes, exhibition galleries and development centers. It is worth noting that in the collection of the Kazan Kremlin there are dozens of architectural monuments of the 12th-20th centuries.
The construction of the complex began in the 10th century. In those days, the Kremlin acted as an outpost of the border of the Volga Bulgaria. Closer to the XIII century, the complex became the center of the Khanate of the Golden Horde. After the capture of the capital by the troops of Ivan the Terrible, the Kremlin was significantly damaged, but soon, by order of the tsar, restoration work began. At the turn of the XVII-XVIII centuries, the Kazan ensemble became the administrative center of the Volga region. Since that time, active work has begun to expand the Kremlin.
Today, anyone can enter the territory of the historical ensemble, however, it is simply impossible to see all the sights in one day.
National Museum of Tatarstan
The republican scientific and historical complex in Kazan was founded in the spring of 1895. His first collections were personal exhibits of the famous archaeologist A. Likhachev. Today, the National Museum (Kazan) in the permanent fund has about 1 million unique items of history and culture. The main sponsors were scientists and archaeologists of the capital's university.
The most valuable exhibits are excavations at the Ananyinsky cemetery, ancient scrolls, collections of ancient gold coins, the first manuscripts and memorial items of Tatar writers. The national museum has many thematic rooms and galleries dedicated to the natural sciences, ethnography, archeology, and music.
The republican complex is located in the building of the formerly famous Gostiny Dvor. His appearance was formed throughout the past century. At the moment, the museum is the center of all historical ensembles of Tatarstan, and also has 14 branches throughout the republic. There are dozens of scientists in the standing expert commission who coordinate the activities of the complex.
State Museum of Fine Arts
The Pushkin Museum is considered one of the largest treasures of ancient and modern art in the Russian Federation. The ISO Museum (Kazan) was created in 1958 by order of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation. The foundation was the unique collections of the State Gallery of the TASSR.
In the late 1960s, the Museum of Fine Arts (Kazan) was housed in the former residence of General A. Sandetsky. Today, the territory of the art complex includes not only the mansion, but also the adjoining park, the foundation's storage buildings, children's creativity centers, a library, a scientific archive and a full-fledged conference room.
The main activities of the gallery are exhibitions, expositions, restoration, publishing, cultural education, etc. In the city of Kazan, the State Museum of Fine Arts also has several autonomous branches. First of all, this is an art gallery called "Hazine", which has been operating since 2005, and the Epiphany bell tower, which is an exhibition hall of ancient Russian culture.
The Museum of Fine Arts (Kazan) is famous for its original creative meetings and large-scale exhibitions. The total area for expositions is 2.500 square meters. m. In 2008, the center of aesthetics was opened on the territory, which works closely with educational institutions throughout Tatarstan.
It is worth noting that there is also a virtual
museum of fine arts. In recent years, Kazan has been very successful in the field of advanced information technologies. Recently, anyone can see rare exhibits and objects of ancient art in electronic form in special computer classes of the museum.
Currently, the fund of the art complex has more than 25 thousand paintings and sculptures. The Museum of Fine Arts (Kazan) can please its visitors with rare collections of Old Russian, Soviet, antique European and national art. In addition, its structure includes exhibition halls dedicated to modern graphics.
Museum of the History of the Republic of Tatarstan
This complex is part of the Kazan Kremlin. In its structure, it is the link between the memorial square of the Khan’s courtyard and the Syuyumbike tower. The Historical Museum (Kazan) in the collection has thousands of exhibits telling about the development of culture and life of the Tatar people and their state. It is worth noting that the chronology of objects in the exhibition halls lasts more than 2,000 years.
The museum has many unique exhibits that have survived to this day in a single copy. All items are genuine, and each of them carries its own interesting story. The archive of the complex is also popular with tourists.
Museum of Natural History
The collection of this research center contains data and exhibits telling about the geological development of Tatarstan. These are fossils, and animal remains, and rare mineral resources, ancient flora.
The museum was founded in 2005, but during its short history managed to become one of the main cultural attractions of Kazan and all of Russia.
The building of the complex consists of 2 floors. The first shows exhibits on minerals and astronomy. On the second floor, anyone can see the unique paleontological exhibition of the region.
Museum of the 1000th anniversary of Kazan
The anniversary gallery consists of three exhibition halls with a total area of 400 square meters. m. There are exhibits telling about the history and modern course of the city of Kazan.
Special attention is paid to the collection of ancient household items and the culture of the capital, dated several hundred years BC. One of the main monuments of the museum is the ancient Kazan Gate, which is considered a symbol of the independence of the Tatar people.
Also in the exhibition halls you can find evidence of a stay in the city of Peter I, Catherine the Great and Nicholas I.
Museum of Islamic Culture
The main historical ensemble of religion in Kazan is located on the basement of the Kul-Sharif Mosque. The Museum of Islam has a research and educational goal. It contains objects of culture and history of the entire Muslim civilization.
In the halls you can not only superficially familiarize yourself with the exhibits, but also study in detail the origins of the Islamic religion. Here is information about the prophets, about Islam as such, etc. One of the most important exhibits of the museum is an antique prayer rug for prayers, a Kaaba model, a compass for locating Mecca, the first rosary, handwritten copies of the Koran, Arabic
silver coins and more.
House-Museum of V.I. Lenin
The memorial building-monument to the famous Russian reformer and revolutionary in the capital of Tatarstan allows you to plunge into the everyday life and the atmosphere of the troubled times in which the leader of the proletariat lived.
The personal museums of Kazan have always amazed tourists with their genuine expositions, but the house of V.I. Lenin stands out from the rest. Here, in each subject, one can trace the formation of the personality of the reformer, his attitude to the family, life, and to himself. In addition, the museum presents genuine references, leaflets and documents of Vladimir Ilyich, his personal photographs, literary sketches, slogans, and sketches.
The memorial house of V.I. Lenin was opened in November 1937. The creation and restoration involved members of the Ulyanov family.
Museum of Zoology Eversmann
One of the main complexes of the natural history of Tatarstan was founded at the beginning of the XIX century by decree of Catherine II. For decades, the museum was replenished with various zoological and paleontological exhibits. However, only in 1860 - at the initiative of E. Eversmann - did the gallery become systematized.
Today, the Zoological Museum in Kazan includes 8 exhibition halls, in which there are about 10 thousand unique specimens of fauna.