Sandunovsky baths (Sanduny) in Moscow
ShutterstockThey could not be together because of the persecution and threats of an influential count, but Empress Catherine the Great herself became the patroness of their marriage ... It's about about Sila Sandunov and Elizaveta Uranova - theater artists, and later the founders of the Sandunov baths. After leaving St. Petersburg, having sold the jewelry donated by the Empress for their wedding, the couple spent the funds on the foundation in 1808 of the oldest and most famous baths in Moscow today.
After the death of Sandunov, the baths changed their owners several times, until late XIX centuries did not pass to the daughter of the millionaire timber merchant Ivan Firsanov, Vera, with whose money her husband Alexei Ganetsky (sometimes written Gonetsky) rebuilt the Sandunovsky baths, turning them into a real "palace for baths, which Moscow has not yet seen." Ganetsky traveled all over the countries of the east and west, where bathing is most popular. All the former buildings of the Sandunovsky baths were demolished, in their place by 1896 new buildings were erected. Neither in style (a combination of baroque, renaissance, rococo, gothic, classicism), nor in engineering systems, the “new” Sanduny had analogues in Moscow.
Passing on to generations the love story of the founders of Sila and Elizabeth, Muscovites believed that the Sanduns bring good luck. It was believed that the bride should come to Sanduny on the eve of the wedding and wash from the silver gang - then be a happy marriage.
In Sanduny there is a bench by Vladimir Mayakovsky. On the bench on the side there is a small sign that says that "the Man who kept pace with the times washed here." They say that
Mayakovsky was excessively squeamish, he was afraid of getting infected with something, and on the days of his visits, this particular bench was kept for him, washed in advance by the workers.
On the eve of the premiere of the film Battleship Potemkin, the director was horrified to realize that they had forgotten to shoot an important scene in Odessa. The director decided to shoot the episode in the Sandunovsky baths. During the day they hastily prepared models of ships for filming, and by the next evening the film was released with an added episode.
The interior of the Sanduny baths
Ksenia Sidorova/RIA NovostiIn Sanduny, they filmed the Battle on the Ice scene in Eisenstein's film "": the knights went under the artificial ice of the same pool.
But the scene in the bathhouse from The Irony of Fate, despite widespread opinion, was filmed not in Sanduny, but under the stairs at Mosfilm.
Everyone praised the “new” Sanduns: Chaliapin, for example, said that there were no such baths anywhere, “and he already traveled around Russia. Not Sanduns - the king of the baths! He admired acoustics and always rehearsed here; all the workers of the bath ran to his singing. They say that Chaliapin in communication was “simple with everyone, he remembered everyone by name and patronymic. He even called the boys after the father. For good people spared nothing: a young guy,
Sandunov, a regular, after five years of acquaintance gave him a Chinese shirt, which he had worn for many years only on holidays.
Since the founding of the "new" Sanduny, reconstruction has been carried out only once, in 1944.
Khludov baths
Khludov (Central) baths. Now a restaurant is located in their place. silver Age»
Wikimedia CommonsThe success of Sandunov's Force did not give rest to entrepreneurs, and in 1889, by order of the merchant Gerasim Khludov, a complex of tenement houses and Khludov baths was built. The first building was erected in 1881, but construction continued for another twelve years. Khludov also planned to build a small palace in the oriental style and even ordered the laying of the foundation, but suddenly fell ill. He died at the age of 64. The grand opening of the complex took place after the death of Khludov, in 1893. The entire inheritance was left to his four daughters, who were more practical than their father and decided instead of the eastern palace to build luxurious baths, which the city needed in those years. Huge halls with stunning decor were in no way inferior to the Sanduns.
As well as in Sanduny, there were many famous people. One of the regular visitors was. He often came in, who also respected the "Sanduns" very much.
And although all engineers, technicians, electricians and plumbers were sent to work in Sanduny upon completion of the construction of the Central Baths, these steam rooms did not become competitors: they were focused on different clients. If simpler merchants washed in Sanduny, then in the Central - rich industrialists, bankers, famous scientists, musicians, doctors, etc. From the very beginning, the Central Baths were visited by generals, while captains and majors preferred the Sanduns. Athletes,
circus strongmen and wrestlers also took a fancy to the Sandunovsky baths even before the revolution, but the football players of Moscow in the 20th century somehow immediately entrenched themselves behind the Central baths.
The ballet dancers of the Bolshoi Theater went mainly to the Central Baths, while the vocalists of the same theater preferred the Sandunovskys. And if he steamed only in Sanduny and only on sanitary days, then his wife, a ballerina, preferred the Central baths.
Shortly before the revolution, Alexandra Naydenova, one of Khludov's daughters, decided to take gold and silver from the bank and hide it in a safe place until better times. No one saw Naydenov in the Central Baths again. Three golden basins with bas-reliefs and forty silver basins, according to the receipt, were received from the bank. They were hidden, most likely, at the bottom of an old well, 180 meters from the Borovitsky Gates of the Kremlin. Employees of the Cheka in 1918 were interested in these valuables: the entire territory of the Central Baths was carefully searched for several days, the floors were opened in several places - they were not found. Since then, none of the generations of the Khludov family has been interested in these basins, although the descendants are alive and well.
During the Great Patriotic War in the baths, a point for distributing medicines for the military, and later for civilians with diabetes, was organized. Also during the war, to make it warmer, the fighters wore cardboard “vests” under their tunic, for which they received from their superiors: not according to the charter.
The employees of the baths, having decided to help the soldiers, cut out portraits of Stalin from the magazines, which they glued onto cardboard - the commanders now did not risk seizing the “vests” from the soldiers.
The history of the baths ended in a rather mystical way. According to legend, on the opening day of the Central Baths one elderly woman from gypsy ensemble told the chief architect, Eibushitz, that the baths would last exactly a century. The architect did not understand Russian very well and asked his colleague Chagin to explain what the woman had in mind. Chagin did not upset his friend and deceived him by saying that "age" means "eternal". However, the prediction came true: first, the baths began to suffer financially during the era of perestroika, and in 1993 there was a fire, after which only four halls survived. Now the baths are used for fashion events.
Krasnopresnensky baths
Krasnopresnensky baths in Moscow
Wikimedia CommonsThe Krasnopresnensky baths were state-owned until the middle of the 19th century, when the coachmen Biryukovs bought them from the city, with whom they remained until October revolution 1917. The Biryukovs were Old Believers. They say that the coachmen visited the bathhouse after each return to Moscow from a long journey, that is, usually two or three times a week, and
each trip to the bath was solemnly furnished: a coachman walked ahead with a broom, followed by his wife with a “soap basket”,
followed by children, relatives, who carried gangs, a samovar and rolls.
At the end of 1905, the Presnensky revolutionaries organized a hospital in the baths. In between battles, combatants were steaming there, who defended the barricades at the Gorbaty Bridge and at Kudrinskaya Square. The building of the baths was badly damaged by the shelling of government troops. They were rebuilt in 1908. After the revolution, the district changed its name, the streets were renamed, the baths were called Krasnopresnensky, but the people still called them Biryukovsky.
When the reconstruction of Krasnaya Presnya began in the 1970s, the width of the street more than doubled and all the old houses on the odd side of the street were demolished. So, in 1980, the Presnensky baths ceased to exist in the old place: a Hungarian trade mission and a cinema center were built there, and the baths moved closer to the metro.
For the building of the "new" Krasnopresnensky baths, architects Ginzburg and Taranov created an individual project, which was rare in the USSR. For their interiors, appearance, technical equipment, the Krasnopresnensky baths received the State Prize, becoming the best in the capital at that time, which was especially important during the Olympics-80. By the way, many athletes liked to bathe in these baths: for example, there you could meet a two-time Olympic champion in swimming or a football player.
Chelyshev baths
In the center of the picture is the Kitay-Gorod Bird Tower (the only tower that has survived to this day). To the right of it is the sign "Trading Baths". These are the famous Chelyshev baths (Chelyshi). Now in their place is the Metropol Hotel.
Wikimedia CommonsWhere the Metropol Hotel now stands in Teatralny Proyezd, the Chelyshev baths were previously located, opened by the merchant Pyotr Chelyshev in the courtyard of his home complex. Water in these baths was originally supplied from a large and deep well with the help of a crane and from the river. And with the opening of the Moscow water supply, a pool with clean Mytishchi water appeared at the Chelyshev baths.
The owners in those days “used every hook or crook to squeeze kopecks and rubles out of everything.
In some bathhouses, they even stole city water,”
wrote in Moscow and Muscovites. So, for example, the story is known, how the pond in the courtyard in the Chelyshev baths, which is always full of water, “suddenly dried up, and the baths were left without water. But the next day the water appeared again - everything went on as before. What happened, where it disappeared and where the water came from again, was not reported to the general public; the authorities did not find out about the event, and those who knew, for their own benefit, did not tell anyone anything.
It turned out that there was a pool on Lubyanka Square, from where water carriers took water. “Water came from the Mytishchi water supply, and as the pool filled up, the watchman locked the taps. When it was necessary to fill the Chelyshevsky pond, the watchman did not lock the pool tap, and the water went through the pipes to the bathing pond. They say that somehow the watchman was dissatisfied with the payment for his "forgetfulness" and deliberately turned off the water in the bathhouse.
“Girl, which bath? He has a bathroom…» Why did you go to the bathhouse? Don't you have a bathroom at home?""You don't understand this"...“But is there steam in the bathroom?”…(Film by E. Ryazanov "The Irony of Fate, or Enjoy Your Bath", 1976)
Moscow is losing its bathhouses, one after the other. In place of the Danilovskys, there is a multi-level garage. . The beautiful stylish building of the 1950s is no more, there is no more address “prayed” by generations of steam lovers. Well, and over the Donskoy - a typical building of constructivism of the 30s - the Damocles sword of two residential towers hung - under 70 meters. And it's right under the walls of the Donskoy Monastery! Architectural losses are also taking place, and a whole layer of unique bathing culture is being eliminated. About its history and modernity - material Alexey Dedushkin.
In the film "The Irony of Fate, or with light steam!" everything is said! And, what is true, many do not understand: if there is a bath at home, then why go to the bath?! But it only seems that a bath can replace a bath…. No no and one more time no! I categorically insist on this! Baths and baths are completely different things. And by perception, and, of course, by the time of its appearance.
You can read about Russian baths in The Tale of Bygone Years. If you believe the chronicler, then Andrew the First-Called was surprised at the crazy Russians, who whipped themselves with rods almost to insensibility: “I saw a miracle in the Slavic land on my way here. I saw wooden bathhouses, and they would heat them up strongly, and they would undress and be naked, and they would cover themselves with leather kvass, and the young would lift the rods on themselves and beat themselves, and they would finish themselves off so much that they would barely get out, barely alive, and would pour themselves over with icy water, and that's the only way they'll come alive. And they do this all the time, they are not tormented by anyone, but they torment themselves, and then they make ablution for themselves, and not torment.
Moscow baths in the old days
Of course, there were bathhouses in Moscow as well. And how without them! For the most part, the descriptions of the baths were left to us by foreigners. Some came to the bathhouse to look at the outlandish action and resent the savagery of "these Russians", but there were also those who perfectly understood the healing power of the Russian bathhouse. A great admirer of the steam room was the personal physician of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, the Portuguese Sanchez. Upon his return from Moscow to Europe, he wrote a whole treatise dedicated to the bath: “I do not hope that such a doctor would be found who would not recognize the steam bath as useful. Everyone clearly sees how happy society would be if it had an easy, harmless and so effective way so that they could not only maintain health, but heal or tame the diseases that so often happen. For my part, I consider only one Russian bath, properly prepared, to be capable of bringing such a great benefit to a person. When I think about the multitude of medicines from pharmacies and from chemical laboratories, coming out and brought from all over the world, how many times I wanted to see that half or three-quarters of these buildings, built everywhere at great expense, would turn into Russian baths, for the benefit of society.
In the old days in Moscow there were many private baths, and not only in the rich boyar or merchant yards, but also in the yards of the townspeople, one could find a “bath with a front bath”, “a bath with senmi in the garden”. But in addition to private, there were also commercial (public) baths, which over time became more and more. So in 1787, there were already about 70 state and commercial baths in Moscow. They were built, as a rule, near rivers and ponds. On many old plans of Moscow, these baths are shown as well "cranes". In particular, on the famous Sigismund plan opposite the Kremlin, the Moskvoretsky baths, as well as the baths on the Yauza, are visible. The same baths can be found on the plan of Merian (1638).
In the 17th century, after the adoption of the Cathedral Code during the time of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, bath buildings began to be farmed out to private individuals and the construction of new baths was encouraged in every possible way.
Small wooden baths were heated "black" - the smoke came out through the windows and doors. As a rule, such baths were covered with turf along the ceiling. In the more expensive stone ones, which were mostly one-story buildings, there were chimneys, additional amenities were provided for washing. But the device and those and others were about the same. Mandatory well with a "crane". From the buckets, water was drained into wooden gutters, passed through special windows, and through them fell into a huge vat installed in the bathhouse itself. From it those who washed themselves drew water. Either in the bath itself, or on the street there was a stove with a boiler for hot water. The bath itself was heated by a large stove with a heater. Inside the room was divided into a soap room and a steam room with shelves.
Bathing pleasure was available to every Muscovite. The government strictly monitored that the owners of the baths did not raise the prices for their services, primarily for the common people's departments: "The collection in the aforementioned state-owned trading baths from people of all ranks who come to the baths, according to the Decree of the government Senate, should be collected no more than two kopecks from each." True, in some cases a price increase was allowed: “If an extension is made for a noble rank at the baths with convenient soaring, then for steam the price is voluntarily put for that service and not put in a claim for that, but otherwise for coercion in excess of what is due for pairs an act contrary to the law to subject it to severe punishment.
Over time, prices have risen somewhat. So, in the 19th century, a bath in the common people's department cost 5 kopecks. Although the most savvy merchants managed to get around the strict ban. So the famous "bath king" Pyotr Biryukov - we'll talk about him more below - really wanted to raise the price by a penny. And even sent a corresponding petition to St. Petersburg. None! 5 kopecks - period. Yet the cunning merchant came up with what to do. Previously, those who paid 5 kopecks were given a free broom. Biryukov began to sell brooms for a penny - there were no prohibitions on this. The people were indignant, and got used to it. The merchant has achieved his goal!
For a long time in public baths there was no division into male and female halves, they washed and steamed all together. No wonder the “bath issue” was discussed at the church council of 1551, which condemned that “in the baths, men and wives and blacks and blacks wash in one place without a gap”, and strictly forbade this “debauchery”.
The conciliar ban helped little. And although they began to build separate soapboxes in Moscow, for example, at the Cannon-casting yard of Ivan Gladin’s bath: “a man’s bath, under it there are 12 sazhens of land along, 8 sazhens across, a women’s bath, under it 12 sazhens of land along and 8 sazhens across”, nevertheless needed long years and even the adoption by the Senate of the corresponding Decree of December 21, 1743, forbidding men and women to bathe together in order to slowly get rid of the patriarchal way of washing together. Another decree was issued in Catherine's times. He ordered the owners of the trading baths to build separate rooms, and let only the men serving the baths, and even doctors and artists, into the women's section. From the middle of the 18th century, in the baths, which had only one room, different days began to be appointed for washing men and women.
Despite this, the Venezuelan Francisco de Miranda, who visited Russia in 1786-1787, wrote: “<…>From there we went to the Big Baths, male and female, on the Moscow River. We first went into the men's rooms, where we saw a great many naked people who splashed in the water without any hesitation. Through a door in a wooden partition, they proceeded to the women's section, where completely naked women walked around, went from the dressing room to the steam room or to the yard, soaped themselves, etc. We watched them for more than an hour, and they continued their manipulations as if nothing had happened, spreading their legs, washing their shameful places, etc. ... In the end, having passed through a crowd of naked women, none of whom thought to hide behind, I went outside and reached another entrance to the same bathhouse, from where everything was clearly visible, and then I went inside again, and the bath attendants, those who charged at the entrance did not even think to stop me ...
There are more than two thousand visitors to this bathhouse, mainly on Saturdays, and only two kopecks are taken from each; however, I was assured that the owner was earning a large income. From there we went outside and proceeded to the river to look at the women who, after the bath, go there to bathe. There were a lot of them, and they went down to the water without the slightest shame. And those who were on the shore and were still washing, shouted to us in Russian: “Look, look, don’t come near!” Men bathe there with women almost intermingled, for, except for the pole, nothing separates them in the river ... ". Let's pay attention to the crafty foreigner - he is indignant, but at the same time “we watched them for more than an hour”, and then he also went to the river to stare ... Apparently, de Miranda describes the Moskvoretsky baths, which we already mentioned above.
Another well-known baths of the 18th - 19th centuries are the Yauzsky, which were originally located on the left bank of the Yauza River not far from its confluence with the Moscow River, and later moved to the right bank and received the name Serebryanichesky. They were closed only at the beginning of the 20th century. It is they that can be seen on the famous watercolor by J. Delabarte “Silver Baths in Moscow”.
In the 19th century, the demand for baths only increased. Bath for Muscovites was an urgent need. Many owners each week gave their employees 5 kopecks for baths and bought soap.
By the end of the 19th century, there were about forty baths in Moscow, of which the most famous were Sandunovsky, Central (Chinese), Seleznevsky, Presnensky (Biryukovskaya), Cloth baths, baths at the Hermitage Hotel on Truba, Malyshevskaya (now Rzhevskaya) and many others. .
A number of baths were built in Soviet times. Among them are the well-known and loved by Muscovites Don, Vorontsov, Dorogomilov, Dangauer, Warsaw, Usachevsky, Kalitnikov.
In addition to baths, shower pavilions were also built in the capital, mainly in areas built up with small wooden houses without running water, and not only on the outskirts, but almost in the center of the city. So, old-timers recall that back in the 1950s, there was a wooden shower pavilion on Samotechny Boulevard, painted on the outside with green oil paint.
If we now conduct an “inventory” of the Moscow bathing industry with you, then its results will turn out to be sad. Over the past 30-40 years, the vast majority of baths have been closed, many buildings have been demolished. And there is no trace left of the famous Gun Baths, which disappeared along with the alley of the same name. Just before the 1980 Olympics, the Presnensky baths were demolished. At the end of January, the Mozhaisk baths on Mozhaisk Val were gone. Prepare for demolition Donskoe…
Legendary Sandoons
But let's not talk about sad things. Let's take a fascinating journey through the most famous Moscow baths of the XIX-XX centuries. And let's start, of course, with the most famous in Moscow for two centuries - the Sandunovsky baths. They, along with Seleznevsky, Astrakhan and Rzhevsky, are one of the four pre-revolutionary baths operating in the Mother See to this day. “He who has not been to Sanduny has not seen Moscow.”
The Sandunovsky baths were built in 1806 on the banks of the Moscow river Neglinka famous actor Force Nikolaevich Sandunov (hence their name that has survived to this day). It is likely that somewhere very close in the 17th century were the baths of Ivashka Gladilin and his comrades mentioned above: “from Rozhdestvenka street in the alley, in Kuznetsy”.
Of course, by the beginning of the 19th century, the waters of the Neglinka were so polluted that it was not possible to use them for bathing, especially since a few years later the river was hidden underground, in a collector. But near the baths, at the corner of Zvonarsky Lane and Neglinny Proyezd, a large water reservoir was built, which was fed initially by soil water, and then by water from the Moscow water supply. This pond was drained and filled in at the end of the 19th century during the construction of a new building of baths.
Very soon after the construction of the Sanduny, they became extremely popular and, in fact, turned into one of cultural centers Moscow. For steam and peaceful conversations after the steam room, the whole color of the Moscow intelligentsia gathered here. The representatives of the Moscow nobility and merchants did not bypass the baths either. Sometimes even the great princes dropped by.
After the death of Sila Sandunov, the baths passed to his widow, Elizaveta Sandunova-Uranova, and later they were owned by the merchants Lomakins. The next owner of the Sandunovsky baths was a merchant of the 1st guild, a millionaire, the owner of numerous wood warehouses Ivan Grigoryevich Firsanov. For a number of years, Firsanov rented bathhouses to Petr Biryukov.
In 1881, Ivan Grigorievich dies, and his daughter Vera becomes the only heir to Firsanov's millions. The girl is not only charming, but also very enterprising. A few years later, she herself decides to take up the bath business together with her second husband Alexei Ganetsky. In 1894, the couple ordered the fashionable architect Boris Freidenberg to rebuild Sanduny. And two years later it took place Grand opening new "bath palace".
Along the red line of Neglinny Proyezd (now Neglinnaya Street), a three-story eclectic-style tenement building was erected, richly decorated with stucco, with retail premises on the first and second floors and expensive apartments for rent on the top floor and along the side facades. In the depths of the courtyard, finished in the "Moorish" style and decorated in the spirit of one of the courtyards famous palace Alhambra, there was a building with bath rooms.
The main buildings of the baths were erected in the second line and included a number of rooms of several categories. The most luxurious was the noble 50-kopeck department. Here is what is written about him in the Illustrated description of the Sandunovsky baths of 1896: “These baths can be considered an adornment of the Sandunovsky baths ... The lobby is decorated in the rococo style and decorated with plants. Through the archway is the entrance to the cloakroom. This room is strictly gothic style. On one of the walls there is a mosaic picture by the artist Frolov. To the left there is a row of narrow multi-colored windows, under them there are small cabinets like carriage compartments for undressing. Soft sofas are placed in the middle of the room, and there is a fireplace to the right. Next to the cloakroom there is a renaissance reading room and a hairdresser's... The cloakroom is followed by the Yellow Drawing Room, intended for non-smokers...The soap room has three bathtubs and six showers of different pressures and temperatures. Second soap elevated temperature and with a Charcot shower ... There is also an Irish dry bath and a hot Russian steam room ... ".
In the same department, the “Pompeevsky” hall was arranged with a vast pool, the walls of which were “lined with Norwegian marble, which differs from Italian in a special brilliance. Light falls from above, through the ceiling. The capacity of the pool is 12,000 buckets. Water temperature from 18-21 degrees R [approximately 23-25 degrees C - A.D.]. The volume of water is constant. The pond is lined with English porcelain. At night, the pool is left without water for ventilation and disinfection.
Already in Soviet years this pool has become a filming location for various movies. So, all the sea scenes of the famous film by S. Eisenstein "Battleship Potemkin" were filmed here. Here, under the “ice”, the “dog-knights” in the film “Alexander Nevsky” also go. Filming, of course, was combined. Here, in the 1950s, schoolchildren were brought to the pool of the highest male category of the Sandunovsky baths on Tuesdays (on a day off for Sanduny) to pass the TRP standards for swimming.
Somewhat simpler, but nevertheless, the 10-kopeck section of the baths was also very richly decorated. Let us turn again to the Illustrated description of the Sandunovsky baths. Here is what is said in this interesting document about the women's section: “There are two dressing rooms in the women's baths: a large one and a small one. The small one is cozier, and separate sofa-chairs give the room the look of a living room. As for the soap and steam rooms, both in the women's and men's rooms, they are very extensive. In the women's and men's baths, souls of two kinds are arranged: from above and below ... In the women's steam room, shelves of different heights and with different temperatures are arranged - very hot and less hot. Soap and steam rooms are lined with porcelain, which allows them to be washed thoroughly. In addition to the 10-kopeck department, there was also a common people's 5-kopeck department.
The baths were equipped with oil-heated steam boilers, their own pumping station, located in Kursovoy Lane, which could “if necessary, supply up to 20,000 buckets per hour during the operation of two water-lifting machines (Compound) to reserve tanks with a capacity of 130,000 buckets located at the baths themselves. The baths had their own plumbing with a filtration system, built by the Moscow firm K. Siegel" project by engineers N. P. Zimin and I. K. Karelsky.
In addition, a power station building was built on the side of Sandunovsky Lane: “The station equipment is three water-tube, safe from explosion, boilers from the Fitzner and Gamper plants, ... two steam engines from the Escher Vis and K plant, dynamo-electric machines from the Oerlikon plant, a storage battery of the 1st Moscow Battery Plant for emergency lighting at night, as well as for lighting basements and tunnels during the day.
Sandunovsky baths were not closed either during the revolution or during the Great Patriotic War. Muscovite O. P. Yanishevskaya shares her memories of the military Sanduns: “I remember the twilight and a long silent queue of women wrapped in scarves, many of whom came with their basins. Actually, there were two queues. In one, those who claimed to receive a tiny, about 3x4x1 cm, bar of dark brown, bad-smelling soap; in the other - those who came with their washing supplies. From time to time a dull voice proclaimed:
- Alone without soap, come in!
And no one smiled at this ambiguous phrase. It is not surprising that the Moscow bath seemed to me like a fairy-tale palace. Light, clean, marble! And most importantly, there was a pool!”
Today it is the largest bath complex in Moscow with three men's and two women's departments. At the same time, it is also the most expensive public baths Moscow: taking a steam bath here, especially in a luxurious top class, is not a cheap pleasure.
In 1991, Sanduny was put on guard as an architectural monument - an object cultural heritage. Shortly thereafter, repair and restoration work was carried out here. Despite this, at present, the safety of the monument raises certain concerns: due to the construction work that began in Zvonarsky Lane, cracks appeared on the walls.
Central (Chinese) Khludov Baths
The main competitor of the Sanduns was always considered to be the Central (or as they were also called - Chinese - according to the former name of the Theater passage, which ran along the walls of Kitay-gorod) Khludov baths located in the Theater passage.
By the way, the place was very "bathhouse". In the old days, the buildings of the Cannon Yard, demolished in 1802-1803, were located here, and Kuznetskaya Sloboda was located next door. Here is what V. M. Vasnetsov, who studied the history of baths in Moscow, wrote: “The abundance of baths in the 17th century in the Kuznetsk end is quite understandable: there was a cannon-casting yard, forges - dirty work, soot, soot, dust, often had to wash and steam ". And until the end of the 19th century, opposite the Central, there were another very famous Moscow baths - Chelyshevskiye. In their place, the building of the Metropol Hotel has been towering for more than a century. By the way, the very first Sandunov Power baths were also somewhere nearby, in the area of the current Theater Square.
The Central Baths were built according to the project of the architect S. S. Eybushits, with the participation of the then quite young lion Kekushev. It is believed that when asked by Eibushits what the new bathing palace should look like, the customer, the famous Moscow millionaire Gerasim Ivanovich Khludov, answered: “Fabulous. So that it is impossible to describe exactly. And also lush. With Russian steam rooms of various categories, a large Turkish hall. The main thing is you work, and I'll tell you." In 1881, the first building of the baths was built, but construction continued for another twelve years. The grand opening took place after the death of Khludov, in 1893, after the construction of the profitable house of Khludov's heirs at the corner of Rozhdestvenka and Teatralny passage, according to the project of L. N. Kekushev. The bath complex housed a number of departments - from inexpensive for the “common people” to a luxurious 50-kopeck or “half-kopeck” department with Russian, Turkish, Finnish rooms, with rich wall decoration with precious woods and gold leaf. In addition to the baths themselves, there was an indoor swimming pool, medical and massage rooms, a mechanical laundry - an absolute novelty for Moscow at that time. A perfumery shop of the Emil Bodlot and Co. trading company, grocery stores, a restaurant, a tavern, a small hotel, a banquet hall, and business meeting rooms were also opened here. In today's language, it was a shopping, entertainment and business center.
As well as in Sanduny, many famous people visited the Khludov baths. For example, one of the regular visitors was L. N. Tolstoy. A.P. Chekhov, who, however, also respected the Sanduns, often went to the fresh steam and birch broom, and even rented an apartment for some time in the tenement house of Vera Firsanova in Zvonarsky Lane.
One enduring Moscow legend is also connected with the Khludov baths. It is believed that shortly before the revolution, the owners of the baths ordered three basins of pure gold and forty silver basins for the "half" department. The further fate of these bath gangs is unknown. According to one version, they could be hidden somewhere on the territory of the baths themselves, according to another, one of the trusted representatives of the owners hid them in his apartment, while a certain apartment on Volkhonka is called ... Did these basins really exist or not … who knows. But there are many such legends in Moscow.
In the Soviet years, the Central baths worked properly, although they lost their original luxury in many ways. And all the same, as before the revolution, they competed with the Sanduns. They disappeared in the early 1990s. Stone baths filled with water burned down... And it happens, a wet stone also burns... when it's really necessary. During the fire, the Turkish Hall was completely destroyed. After that, they never resumed their work. After renovations, an expensive restaurant was opened in the former bathhouse and night club. It is curious that one of the halls of the restaurant was at the bottom of the pool - of course, there was no water in it.
In 1993, the complex of the former Khludov baths was put under protection as an architectural monument. The profitable house of Khludov's heirs was rebuilt twice - in 1934 and in the 1990s (also after a fire). Now it is a completely different, boring administrative building, nothing remains of the original project of the late 19th century. But this is from the side of the main facades. If you enter the courtyard from the side of Teatralny Proyezd, then on the courtyard facades you can see some more surviving Kekushev details. And if you go, be sure to pay attention to the shoe-shine booth at the entrance to the courtyard. That's where the permanence is! In this place, she stands for almost a century.
Another old Moscow baths are Seleznevsky on Seleznevskaya Street (before the revolution they were also called Samotetsky). They were probably built in the 18th century. The place for the baths was not chosen by chance: there were large Neglinensky ponds nearby.
In the late XIX - early XX centuries, the baths belonged to the merchant S. S. Krashennikov. The existing bath buildings were erected in the 1870s, and in 1888 the architect A.P. Popov added two stone buildings to them from the side of Seleznevskaya Street: “Noble” and “Common” departments, which became in the Soviet years, respectively, male and women's sections. At present, the left building is mainly reserved for baths.
In 1901, Krasheninnikov built near the baths according to the project of the architect P. P. Shchekotov tenement house(No. 13 on Seleznevskaya Street), which fenced off the merchant’s own mansion from the street and city noise, which has survived, albeit in a rebuilt form, to this day
The Seleznevsky baths are protected as an object of cultural heritage, but only partially: only one building is an architectural monument.
Rzhev and Astrakhan baths
And, finally, two more baths that have been operating in Moscow since the 19th century - Rzhev and Astrakhan.
The Rzhev baths were built by the merchant of the 2nd guild Ivan Nikolaevich Malyshev in 1888 on the 3rd Meshchanskaya street (modern address: Banny proezd, 3). Malyshev by that time was no longer a novice in the bath business: he owned baths in Neglinny passage in the building of the Hermitage Hotel (later transferred to F. P. Kuznetsov) and on Krasnoselskaya Street.
The "Rzhev" baths became in Soviet times, and before they bore the name of the owner - Malyshevsky. After the revolution, they were renamed Krestovsky, due to their proximity to the Krestovskaya outpost, and since 1936 they began to be called "Bath complex No. 3 of the Dzerzhinsky district of Moscow." However, at that time all Moscow baths received such numbered names. If you look through the reference book “Moscow in new districts” of 1936, we will find out that the capacity of baths “according to the number of places in the underwear locker room” was 455 people, there were three categories, and in 1935 1,091,200 people were served here. There is information on the website of the baths that “during the years of the Great Patriotic War, the baths were serviced by military formations sent to the front from the Rzhevsky railway station (now the Riga station), it was then that our bath complex received the “folk” name “Rzhevsky baths”, for its proximity to the station of the same name " .
In 1947, the bath complex was reconstructed and the name "Rzhev baths" became official.
In the Rzhev baths, however, as in the Seleznevsky, the so-called "old Moscow" method of soaring has been preserved. After a thorough washing and airing of the steam room, giving steam, a special “waver” with a large fan made of birch branches, douses the steamers lying on the shelf with steam, scooping up the steam from above, where there is more heat. By the way, the administration of the baths claims that the steam room has not been rebuilt since they were built.
The building of the Rzhev baths was recently renovated, both outside and inside, and now they are one of the prettiest and relatively inexpensive Moscow baths.
Not far from Rzhevsky, on the other side of Prospekt Mira, in Astrakhansky Lane, there are Astrakhan baths. They are located in an old building built at the end of the 19th century, which belonged to the Joint Stock Company of the Moscow Steam Laundry and Commercial Baths before the revolution.
In the 1970s, actors, journalists and diplomats who lived in the vicinity of Prospekt Mira liked to bathe in them. At present, these are perhaps the most democratic and inexpensive of all the existing and still pre-revolutionary Moscow baths. And at the same time with a good ferry!
Kadashevsky baths
There are other well-known and beloved baths in Moscow - Kadashevsky, in the 3rd Kadashevsky Lane. The pre-revolutionary building has been perfectly preserved, only instead of baths there was a sauna for a long time.
In 1905, the merchant Fyodor Mikhailovich Kuznetsov, the owner of the "European" and "Moscow" baths owned by the Hermitage Olivier joint-stock company on Neglinka and the tenant of the famous "Central" Khludov baths, began building his own baths in Zamoskvorechye. One of the most famous Moscow architects A. E. Erichson built baths in the Art Nouveau style. The newly built baths were called "European". In Soviet times, the baths became "Kadashevsky". In the post-perestroika years, they were closed, the building was exhausted for a long time, there were rumors about its demolition, but now restoration has finally begun, which will last until August of this year.
"Bath King" Pyotr Biryukov
Our story about Moscow baths would be incomplete if at least a few words were not said about the famous “king of the baths” of the 19th century, Pyotr Fedorovich Biryukov. V. A. Gilyarovsky wrote about him: “Biryukov, the bathing king, as he was called in Moscow. He came to Moscow in bast shoes, as a boy, still under the Lamakins, in the baths, worked for 10 years, built a number of baths, and kept the Sandunovsky ones. Everything is so, and he built a bathhouse, and kept the Sandunovskys on rent for twenty-five thousand rubles a year, but it is not known where Vladimir Alekseevich got it from, that Pyotr Biryukov came to Moscow as a boy in bast shoes. The future bath king came from a family of Rogozhsky coachmen-Old Believers. When in mid-nineteenth centuries, the pit chase gradually came to replace Railway, many rich coachmen changed their occupation. Biryukov decided to take up the bath business.
He arranged his first baths there, in the Rogozhskaya Sloboda. The demand was good, the bath in Rogozhskaya was the first entertainment. Here is how a native of the Rogozhskaya Sloboda, a well-known tenor of the Bolshoi Theater P. I. Bogatyrev, describes the bathing days: “On Saturdays and especially before big holidays went to the bath. Women went in a crowd, the whole family, and families were large. It was some kind of solemn procession - with knots, with their copper basins, otherwise it was a sin to wash from Nikonian ones. The baths are crowded, noisy, fussing and often scolding. Firewood was often sent for such families, since it was difficult to walk from the bathhouse. On such days, people moved through the streets to and from the bathhouse all day long, and everyone had brooms, which were then given to those who wished for free, and everyone was willing - a broom is a necessary thing in the house.
Having saved up some money, Biryukov bought another bath nearby, in Taganka. By the end of the 19th century, he owned five baths and rented several more. After his death, the bathhouse economy passed to his widow Claudia Pavlovna and his sons, who formed the partnership "Biryukov P. F. heirs." They re-equipped all the baths, installed plumbing in them. By the way, the son of Pyotr Fedorovich - Nikolai - was an excellent engineer, he founded the Water Supply and Sewer Technical Office in Moscow, and became one of the organizers of the Moscow Water Rescue Society. Note that all his undertakings are connected with water - one might say, hereditary.
Of all the Biryukovsky baths, not one has survived to this day. Gravity baths on Samotechny Boulevard have not been operating for a long time, although some of the bathhouse buildings have been preserved. By the way, the bath complex on Samotek was quite extensive. It consisted of several separate buildings. One occupied the entire block between Sadovaya-Samotechnaya and 1st Volkonsky Lane, the second - at the corner of Samotechnaya Street and 2nd Volkonsky Lane. In Soviet times, this complex was divided into two baths. According to the address book of Moscow for 1956, they were called "1st Self-flowing" and "2nd Self-flowing". But it's official. And not officially - Samotechnye and Volkonsky (those that are on the corner of 2nd Volkonsky).
Another Moscow legend is connected with the Volkonsky baths, which says that in 1812, not just anyone, but Napoleon Bonaparte himself, took a steam bath here. The imperial ablution is nothing more than a legend, but the French of the Napoleonic army could well bathe here: baths on the banks of the Samotetsky ponds, which were later filled up, existed for a very long time. In the Soviet years, these were very inexpensive (with 16 and 8 kopeck compartments) baths with an excellent steam room. They closed them back in the 1970s. In 2002, all historical bath buildings were completely reconstructed with partial preservation of street facades and adaptation to office space.
The Biryukovs' own house has been preserved, facing Sadovaya-Samotechnaya. The house, by the way, is very interesting, with wooden carvings on the facade depicting some birds. For this, it is sometimes called the "house with roosters." Now one of the chain restaurants has settled in the building.
The gun baths have been demolished, as mentioned above, and the most famous Biryukovsky baths, the Presnensky ones, have also been demolished. They were located at the corner of Bolshaya Presnya and Prudovaya streets (now Krasnaya Presnya and Druzhinnikovskaya streets).
The beautiful one-story building of the Presnensky Baths was built in the Art Nouveau style in 1903. The design of the facades abounded with rich stucco and forging. The decoration of the baths was the ceramic panel "Swans" by Mikhail Vrubel, located in a horseshoe-shaped niche above the main corner entrance. There were two branches: Noble and Common. At the baths there was a buffet, a tea room, a billiard room and even a library, there was also a small winter garden.
In December 1905, the Biryukovskiye baths found themselves at the epicenter of revolutionary events in Presnya. The combatants set up a hospital here, and at the same time steamed between battles. As a result, the building was badly damaged by the shelling of government troops. Three years later, Biryukov, according to the project of architect I.P. Mashkov and civil engineer B.M. Nilus, completely restored his baths.
In Soviet times, they retained their popularity, but from Presnensky they became Krasnopresnensky. True, the old-timers continued to call them Biryukovskys from old memory. By the 1970s, the baths were seriously dilapidated, Vrubel's "Swans" disappeared from the facade, and just before the 1980 Olympics, during the reconstruction of Krasnaya Presnya Street, the baths were demolished. Somewhat later, the buildings of the Hungarian Trade Mission and the Cinema Center were built here.
But the Krasnopresnensky baths did not disappear from the “bath map” of Moscow. Even before the demolition of the old building relatively nearby, near the metro station "Ulitsa 1905 Goda", in Stolyarny Lane, the construction of a new building of the Krasnopresnensky baths began. And what is interesting - individual project, made by architects V. M. Ginzburg, A. I. Taranov, M. A. Filippov.
A reminder of the old baths is the horseshoe-shaped arch of the main entrance of the new Krasnopresnensky baths with white stone edging around the edges. True, there are no more swans on the facade, but there is a good steam room with gas stoves that heat cast-iron blanks.
On this, our protracted walk, perhaps, should end. And again to return to the beginning - so all the same: a bath or a bath?! For lovers of healthy light steam, of course, a bath! Remember: “But is there steam in the bathroom?” But, judging by what has been happening in Moscow over the past thirty or forty years, the proponents of baths are undoubtedly winning. There are fewer and fewer Russian baths (we are not talking about private Finnish steam rooms here), historical Buildings the baths are being demolished... It remains only to recall the words of the doctor Sanchez, who advocated the construction of "Russian baths, for the benefit of society."
Thanks to Nikolai Demidov and Yulia Grebennikova for the photos.
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Chinese baths, Central baths, Khludov baths and even the Silver Age restaurant are all one object, a monument of cultural heritage, which will be my story today. They were called Chinese by the former name of the passage where they were located. According to the documents, initially they were even listed as Russian-Chinese, but soon after the opening, the owners renamed them Central.
They were called Khludovsky by the name of the owners - a merchant family founded by Ivan Khludov. The land in the center of Moscow, in Theater passage, was bought by his son, Gerasim Ivanovich Khludov, and the building described was built by his heirs, four daughters, after the death of his father. As an architect, they invited a very well-known Moscow architect in those years, Semyon Semenovich Eibushitz. By the way, S.S. Eybushitz is the author of the project of the Moscow Choral Synagogue in Bolshoy Spasoglinishevsky Lane, which was described in the review of the temples in the Kitai-gorod area.
As for this project, the customers expressed their wish to the architect that the baths be fabulous. The baths turned out to be really fabulous, but complex in engineering and technical terms. Therefore, in order to realize his plans, S.S. Eibuschitz invited from St. Petersburg the engineer-architect Lev Nikolaevich Kekushev and a very peculiar artist Alfred Tomashko, an Orthodox Czech.
In total, construction took almost four years, and the official opening of the Central Baths took place on April 28 (May 10), 1893.
In addition to the baths themselves, there was an indoor swimming pool, medical and massage rooms, a hairdresser's, a mechanical laundry - an absolute novelty for Moscow of that era. A perfumery shop of the Emil Bodlot and Co. trading company, grocery stores, a restaurant, a tavern, a small hotel, a banquet hall, and business meeting rooms were also opened here. This is what the building of the baths looked like at that time
From the photo we can see what the prices were: from 5 kopecks in common people's baths to 50 in higher categories. In the last, so-called “half-thirty” department, there were Russian, Turkish, Finnish halls with rich wall decoration with valuable woods and gold leaf. For a separate three-room suite, prices reached 10 rubles.
The highest ranks of the Central Baths have developed their own clientele: wealthy industrialists, bankers, very famous scientists, musicians, doctors, generals, eminent merchants. It is curious that the ballet dancers of the Bolshoi Theater visited mainly the Central Baths, and the vocalists of the same theater visited the Sandunovskys. Even Fyodor Chaliapin went only to the Sanduny, and his wife, a ballerina, visited the Central with her colleagues. L.N. Tolstoy was a regular visitor to the Central Baths, A.P. Chekhov also visited here.
After 1917, the Khludovs left for France. Baths, although they lost their original luxury in many respects, continued to work until the early 1990s. Then a strong fire broke out in the building, after the elimination of the consequences of which a restaurant was opened in the former bathhouse. In 1993, the complex of the former Khludov baths was put under protection as an architectural monument.
Now the building looks like this
We enter the building and find ourselves in the hall, where such a luxurious two-flight staircase is located
It is believed that this staircase is a copy front staircase at the Paris Grand Opera.
There is very little space in front of the stairs and it does not fit entirely in a regular lens, so I will use an Internet photo with a wide-angle lens
I think that this staircase is rightfully considered one of the best creations of L.N. Kekushev. By the way, for the invited Kekushev, participation in the construction of these baths was one of the first projects implemented in Moscow.
Consider the dragons guarding the stairs
The staircase railing is made in the form of bizarre floral patterns, turning into fantastic animals.
Even such a utilitarian thing as the radiator grill in the hall is made in the same style and with great taste.
We rise to the intermediate landing. Here is a view of the railing
The railing of the upper part of the main staircase is lighter and more openwork
If you have enough willpower to tear your eyes away from the lace of the railing and lift it up, then we will see ... the sky ...
... surrounded by the richest and most bizarre stucco ...
which can be viewed for hours
But there are also walls decorated with pilasters and stucco.
We will climb up the stairs to the balcony, decorated with such floor lamps
On the balcony, the floor is interesting, preserved from the moment the baths were built.
At the top of the stairs is now a bar, made of dark wood. Whether it was before - I'm not sure, but the tiled floor here is genuine
From here we get into the big hall of the restaurant
There used to be a locker room here. Separate details of the former decoration have been preserved: coffered ceilings, decorated with stucco, painting and gilding ...
... a fireplace with lions, like the architectural signature of Lev Kekushev ...
… the design of doorways
Now these doors are not used, but earlier it was through them that they got into the next room - the Moorish hall or the Moorish smoking room. Here is her modern look.
The ceiling needs no comment, just look
It was fashionable in those days to have an oriental-style smoking room. For example, I talked about a similar room in a review of the Stakheev mansion. By the way, it is interesting to compare these two stylizations by different artists: in the smoking room of the Chinese baths, you can immediately notice greater color loading and quirkiness of forms. The creators of this Moorish hall responded to reproaches for the variegated design that they collaborated with real oriental artists when creating the interior.
Pay attention to the shape of the windows ...
... decorating the corners of the room ...
… doorways
Again, these doors are not used today, but earlier they were open and from the Moorish hall it was possible to get into the next one - a room with a pool
In the center of this hall, there is still a swimming pool, although it is decorative, but it was, if not the first, then one of the first indoor swimming pools in Moscow. In general, it must be said that for its time, a number of technical and engineering innovations were applied in the Central Baths. In all categories of baths there was a separate shower, where the temperature of the water changed from cool to warm with a certain frequency. The first public elevator in the city was installed here, before that all elevators in the city were personal. Moreover, L.N. Kekushev improved the elevator so that the latter functioned even with a complete power outage. This invention, with the permission of the author, the German manufacturer began to apply in its production.
L.N. Kekushev invented a steam engine for chopping firewood, which worked unchanged until 1931, then it was converted to electricity, and the machine chopped wood until 1953 (!) until the baths switched to gas. Also, according to the drawings of L.N. Kekushev, underground treatment facilities with a triple sump were made, and next to the baths, even in the heat and calm, there was no smell (unlike the Sandunovsky baths, with which the Central baths constantly competed). It is clear why the Central Baths were served by about 250 people, not counting the suppliers of firewood, brooms, other consumables, etc.
So the pool was an original engineering solution: it was not dug into the ground, but rested on the top of the vaulted room below it. They came to see the pool, which is essentially hanging in the air, on purpose. As far as I understood the words of the guide, initially the pool area was larger, and the passage along the walls of the hall was narrower.
Along the edge of the pool there are such fountains in the form of pissing boys
Sculptures of ancient gods are placed in niches along the perimeter of the hall.
The dome of the pool is decorated with images of sailboats
In the center of the dome, in the drum, there are round windows through which sunlight penetrated. Now it is not so spectacular, because in Soviet times taller buildings were erected around the baths, partially obscuring the light.
Very colorful panels of ceramic tiles of bright, saturated colors
It is also worth mentioning a small room, which is now used as a banquet hall, and was previously a hairdresser (the entrance to it is from the large hall of the restaurant)
How to get to the Chinese / Central baths
I am especially pleased to report that, unlike all the previously described objects and most of which the story is yet to come, this is quite an accessible room. As I mentioned at the beginning of the story, now there is a restaurant here (Teatralny proezd, 3, building 3). At the moment it is called "Silver Age" and it is easy to find it, although it is not visible from Teatralnaya proezd. The closest to it is to go from metro station Lubyanka (exit to Children's world) is literally 2 minutes. A little further to go from metro station Teatralnaya (exit to the Bolshoi Theater), here is the route
From the street the entrance to the courtyard looks like this
Don't be put off by the barrier, the passage is free. Immediately behind the arch, on the left, you will see a restaurant. It is clear that you will not be allowed to just walk around the restaurant and look at the interiors, but you can combine them! Here is the restaurant menu, and although the prices cannot be called everyday, you can sometimes afford it, considering it a change of scenery or an investment in something interesting.
I myself visited the restaurant with a tour and can not evaluate its cuisine. So I included this review in the "Where to Eat" section not out of respect for the gastronomic achievements of the facility, but taking into account the potential application of the information obtained on our website)).
In addition, hookahs are offered in the Moorish hall and in the pool room, here is the range and prices
As the guide said, the premises here are often rented for banquets, corporate parties, birthdays, including children's, etc. Can you imagine a costumed New Year's corporate party in Mauritanian interiors and with hookahs?! Or a bride in a dress with a train on the stairs a la the Grand Opera?! So new and joyful impressions to you!
Guide to Architectural StylesThe complex of tenement houses and bathhouses was built by Semyon Eybushitz by order of Khludov in 1889. The entrepreneur was haunted by the success of Sandunov's Power, and he decided to take up the bath business. When the architect asked the customer how he sees the future Chinese baths (named in proximity to), he replied that they were fabulous and lush, with Russian steam rooms of various categories, a large Turkish hall. Perhaps that is why the bath complex was built in the then new eclectic style.
Baths gone! They had everything: frescoes, stained-glass windows, gilding, mahogany. And water was pumped from the Moscow River through a special water supply system. The prices of the Khludov baths started from 5 kopecks in the "common people's baths" and reached 10 rubles for a separate three-room suite.
But this was not enough for Khludov, and he turned the baths into a multifunctional complex where one could relax, dine, visit a doctor, make a deal. There was also a special children's department at the baths - with toys and a bath attendant assigned to each child.
And on the Khamovnicheskaya embankment of the bath, a "beach branch" was opened. From the Gulf of Finland, white fine sand was specially delivered there.
Gerasim Khludov himself did not live to see the opening of the baths, and his daughters were already completing the construction. On April 28, 1893, when Eibushitz completed the construction of a residential building for the Khludov family, their grand opening took place in the banquet hall of the Chinese baths.
After 1917, the Khludovs had to leave for France, and in Soviet times the baths began to be called "Central". They worked until the early 1990s.
In 1924-1925, the Moscow Communal Museum, the predecessor of the Museum of Moscow, worked in the building of the former apartment building of Khludov. In 1934 the building was built on two floors.
In 1993, a fire destroyed many of the interiors and damaged the facades of the building. Now there is a restaurant in the former Khludov baths. The building was rebuilt, but the interiors of the hall, the classical hall, the Moorish room and the pool were preserved. The marble staircase designed by Lev Kekushev has also survived.
They say that......the first mechanical laundry in Russia and the first indoor swimming pools in Moscow appeared in the Central Baths.
... in the Khludov baths, representatives of different diasporas met and steamed together: Germans, French, Armenians.
... on the eve of departure, one of Khludov's daughters called three reliable workers and said that in 1914 the Khludovs ordered 3 pure gold basins (weighing 10 kilograms) and 40 silver basins for baths. Because of the war, they had to be deposited in a Moscow bank. Precious gangs were not taken out, but hidden. Therefore, the walls and ceilings of the Central Baths were carefully examined, but no basins were found. They say that one of the workers hid them in the courtyard of his apartment on Volkhonka, where a well was being dug at that time.
Photos of the interiors of the Khludov baths:
In the very center of Moscow, there is the building of the Khludovsky baths with one of the most beautiful interiors. It is surprising that the premises of amazing elegance were intended for domestic needs. Currently, the object is not used for its intended purpose, but you can visit the historical site with a guided tour. On the site of the Khludovski baths, there is the Silver Age restaurant, where you can feel the atmosphere of those times, thanks to the luxurious interiors.
At the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, the Khludovs' Chinese baths were one of the most popular places among the secular public of Moscow. At various times, many famous personalities have been here, including Chekhov and Tolstoy. The baths were rich in innovations: there was a machine that removed excess moisture; 2 types of heating worked: air and water; water passed 3 degrees of purification.
Excursions to Khludov baths
Since the Khludov Baths do not have an official website, excursions can be purchased at the Museums of Moscow. The tour includes an inspection of the interiors of the Khludov Baths: a classic hall with a fireplace and elegant stucco, a round pool (one of the first indoor pools in Moscow), a Moorish-style smoking room, and a staircase of unique beauty and design.
There is no official website for the Khludov baths. Tours can be purchased upon request from the State Association "Museums of Moscow" (conducted irregularly) or from private Moscow guides.
Without a tour guide, you can visit the restaurant. But be aware that the prices here are high. Tourists claim that the tour is cheaper than lunch in a restaurant.
Story
The most famous metropolitan bath complex was built in 1889 by Semyon Eybushitz for the merchant Gerasim Khludov. The enterprising co-owner of a textile factory in Yegorievsk wanted to compete with the profitable Sandunovsky baths, which at that time were located in the building of the Metropol Hotel. Khludov planned to surpass the Sandunovs. According to his idea, the baths were supposed to represent a kind of shopping and entertainment complex - unique for Moscow in the 19th century. Externally, the building was designed by the already mentioned Semyon Eybushitz, and Lev Kekushev was involved in the interiors.
During the life of the merchant, simple, “5-kopeck baths” were built, which did not bring income. After the death of Gerasim Khludov, his daughters brought to life all the ideas of their father: a noble body of baths was erected. Rest here cost many times more - from 50 kopecks for a common bath to 12 rubles for an apartment of 3 rooms with a pool.
The complete complex opened in 1893. In addition to washing, one could dine here in a tavern or restaurant, visit a hairdresser or manicurist, improve their health in the offices of a masseur and chiropractor. The complex included a perfume shop, food stalls, hotel rooms, an indoor pool, and a business meeting room. People came to the Khludov baths not for an hour of washing, but for the whole day - to relax, gossip, spend the day with the family.
In Soviet times, the baths did not lose their original purpose, they only changed their name - from Khludovsky to the Central Baths of Moscow. Another name, Chinese baths, appeared as a result of the proximity to the Kitaigorod wall.
On the eve of the departure of Khludov's daughters to France, one of them asked the three most reliable workers to hide precious inventory: 3 basins of pure gold and 40 of silver. Later, the walls and all the premises were carefully searched, but the utensils were never found.
In 1993, a fire broke out in the baths, as a result of which almost all the premises were completely burned out. The original interior has been preserved only in a few rooms in the left building. Currently, the chic interiors of noble baths adorn the Silver Age restaurant. And on the site of the burned-out washing departments, a chic Ararat Park Hyatt hotel was built.
Interior
The most impressive interior details available for viewing today:
- Marble staircase. It is an exact copy of the staircase (only slightly reduced) of the Parisian Grand Opera. The railings of the staircase railing are decorated with openwork casting in the form of a floral pattern; when climbing to the second floor, it is divided. On the ground floor, the staircase railings are crowned with dragons.
- Fireplace. A small decorative fireplace is decorated with a porcelain medallion and an openwork lattice.
- Plafond on the ceiling. The ceilings are decorated with bizarre stucco, against which a ceiling with the image of the sky and clouds stands out.
- Caisson ceilings. Kekushev generously decorated the ceilings and walls with "cassettes" or "caissons". They are squares or rectangles pressed into the surface.
- Dressing room. Now there is a restaurant hall. It is made in the Renaissance style: stucco, gilding, a fireplace with lions and angels, a bar counter made of noble wood.
- Moorish smoking room. The interior has retained the mosaics and arches on the walls. Today the room is used as a hookah bar.
- Hall with pool and fountain. The room is decorated in maritime theme and decorated with gilded Doric columns, majolica panels with angels and antique statues in niches.
How to get to Khludovsky baths in Moscow
The exact address of the Khludovski baths is Teatralny proezd, building 3, building 3. A couple of minutes walk from the Bolshoi Theater and the Central Children's Store. Approximately at the same distance there are 2 metro stations:
- "Kuznetsky bridge"(Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya line).
- "Lubyanka"(Sokolnicheskaya line).
- "Revolution square"(Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya line).
Ground transport stops at Theater Square, near the Bolshoi Theatre. The stop is called "Teatralnaya Square", it can be reached by buses M2, M3, M10, M27, H1, H2, H11, 38, 101, 144, 904.
You can call a taxi in Moscow through the applications: Yandex. Taxi, Uber, Gett, Maxim, Taxi Lucky.
External view of the Khludov baths (Serebryany Vek restaurant) on Yandex-panoramas
Khludov (Central) baths on video