The white-stone chambers of the Romanov boyars in the Zaryadye district, along the current Varvarka street, 8-10, were once part of the buildings of a large city courtyard. According to researchers, the estate complex began to form at the end of the 15th century, and already in 1597 it was marked in the foreground of the city of Moscow.

According to legend, it was here in July 1596 that Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, the founder of a new royal dynasty, was born. The building itself has not been preserved in its original form, but the current building stands on a deep basement, lined with white stone and built, in all likelihood, in the XVI century.

During the reign of Boris Godunov, representatives of the Romanov family, as obvious contenders for the Russian crown, were persecuted. So, Fyodor Nikitich - the father of the future autocrat Mikhail Fedorovich - was thrown into the dungeons in 1599, and then completely tonsured a monk. During that period, the local Chambers were left unattended.

As mentioned above, the manor possessions occupied a decent territory, which was already recorded on the plan of the Mother See of 1613. The main residential building for the residence of the Romanov boyars was the "Chambers on the lower cellars", which were located in the center of the estate and were more extensive than those currently existing.

In 1626, on May 3, another fire broke out in Moscow, in the fire of which the Romanovs' chambers on Varvarka were also damaged. Their revival began already during the reign of Mikhail Fedorovich. He himself then lived in the Kremlin royal chambers, and this possession was already referred to as "The old sovereign's court, which is on the Barbarian sacrum or near Varvara-mountain."

Over time, the Romanovs unsubscribed the chambers of the Znamenskaya monastery, and in the future the buildings were repeatedly reconstructed.

In 1859, the chambers were bought from the monastery for 20 thousand rubles, and at the behest of Alexander II, the "House of the Romanov Boyars" was opened here - which became one of the first museums Russian Empire. Interestingly, the monastic supremacy wanted to transfer the property free of charge to the secular authorities, but the emperor ordered them to receive a monetary reward anyway.

The project of the future ensemble was entrusted to the court architect Fyodor Fyodorovich Richter. The main task was to recreate the everyday surroundings of the ancestors of the first Russian autocrat from the Romanov family.

As a result of the work, the upper floor was restored, raising it from wood and giving it the appearance of a tower with a high roof (in the era of the first Romanovs, stone chambers were raised only to the level of 2 floors, and if necessary, the third level was built only from wood). The building was crowned with a weather vane in the likeness of a griffin - the heraldic sign of the Romanov family.

In the same period, the front porch was completed, and richly decorated tiled stoves were installed in the interior, the walls were upholstered with brocade with royal monograms applied, and parquet was laid.

Although only cellars of the cellars remained from the original chambers of the Romanov boyars, and the building itself was erected and rebuilt during the years the monastery was here, the courtiers invented a beautiful legend that it was these walls that were the first to see the future Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich born here.

The history of the Romanov chambers on Varvarka after the revolution

After 1917, the museum in the chambers of the Romanov boyars on Varvarka, 8-10 was closed, but already in 1923, having determined the architectural and historical value of the object, the “Museum of Boyar Life” was opened within these walls.

During the restoration work carried out in Soviet time, within the territory of museum complex found unique wooden artifacts - three crowns of an ancient log house, part of the stove masonry, as well as a necropolis of the 16th century. But of particular interest was the discovery of a pottery workshop with two kilns that once stood there.

Today the Chambers of the Romanovs are a branch of the Historical Museum. All available 3 floors are open for visiting, in which are located: on the first level - stone and brick basements; on the second, which is on the same level as Varvarka, visitors can see the refectory, the boyar library and the study; on the third level - the female half with a room. It is worth noting that the decoration of the premises was recreated using authentic items of the seventeenth century.

The museum complex, in addition to the Chambers of the Romanov boyars, includes a cathedral, several churches, a preserved ancient fortress wall - a total of 11 objects erected in the period from the 16th to the 17th centuries.

In 2008, the Chambers acquired the former decorative element - a stucco griffin in the niche of the wall from the side of Varvarka Street, knocked down by the Bolsheviks at the beginning of their rule. But the weather vane they shot was left in its original form - with bullet holes. The restoration was made possible thanks to the descendants of the Romanov family and the family of the architect Fyodor Richter.

• Family estate of the Romanov boyars(chambers of the 15th-17th centuries) were recreated in the 19th century at the direction of Alexander I, which was the first scientific restoration in Moscow.
• The museum presents authentic historical artifacts: weapons of the 16th–17th centuries, books, engravings, stationery, chests and other items.
• This is the only museum in Russia acquainting visitors with all aspects of the patriarchal life of the Moscow boyars of the 16th-17th centuries.
• Due to the characteristics of the building, the presence of visitors from children or wheelchairs impossible.
• AT this moment the museum is closed for repair and restoration work.

The Museum of the Chambers of the Romanov Boyars is located near the Kremlin, in historic building- chambers of the XV-XVII centuries. It is part of a unique medieval architectural ensemble on the . It is believed that it was in these chambers that the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty, Mikhail Fedorovich, was born. In the premises of the museum are thematic expositions and reconstructions dedicated to the life of the former inhabitants of the estate. The museum seems to have been transferred from the 16th to the 21st century, and it is worth visiting for everyone who is interested in the history of Russia.

About the museum

The family estate of the Romanov boyars was recreated in the 19th century. at the direction of Emperor Alexander I, after which all Russian emperors, ending with Nicholas II, visited these chambers to bow to the memory of their ancestors. Under the guidance of the architect F.F. Richter, restoration work was carried out, as a result of which the original appearance of the rich boyar house of the 16th–17th centuries was returned to the chambers. And in 1859 a museum was opened in the chambers. Were recreated as lost architectural elements, and the interiors of the building: tiled stoves, a wooden superstructure-room, "boyar's office", "refectory" and so on. The work carried out by F. F. Richter was the first case of scientific restoration of a building in Moscow.

At present, the Romanovs' chambers are again decorated with the family symbols of the dynasty: on the northern and eastern facades, the Romanovs' family coat of arms - a griffin (architect A.V. Chernousov) has been recreated.

The unique character of the museum is given by authentic historical exhibits. Here you can see authentic weapons (squeaks, spears, sabers) of the 16th-17th centuries, chests, books and engravings, writing materials, household items (furniture, clothes, fabrics, jewelry, children's toys, silver utensils). Thematic expositions dedicated to different parties the lives of the former inhabitants of the estate. So, in the office of the boyar - objects that tell about the level of education of the owner, his hobbies and service at court, in the "maiden" - about the occupations of women of the 16th-17th centuries: weaving, embroidery, raising children. The refectory will give you an idea of ​​the traditions of hospitality and feasts in the era medieval Russia. The exposition also includes genuine silverware from the collection of the State historical museum. The walls of the refectory are upholstered with brocade fabric, recreated according to the surviving examples of the 19th century. On the walls of the chambers, covered with brocade and leather wallpaper, coats of arms and monograms of the boyar family were applied.

The basement contains a reconstruction of a traditional Russian stove and household items from the 16th–17th centuries. A real 16th century cooking oven, found during the archaeological excavations of Zaryadye, can be seen in the underground part of the museum complex. presented there and archaeological sites XII-XVI centuries, which will tell about the Moscow district of Zaryadye and the estate of the Romanov boyars in different periods stories.

History of the Romanov Chambers

The main chambers “on the upper cellars”, which date back to the 15th-17th centuries, have survived to this day. They repeatedly suffered from Moscow fires and were rebuilt. In these chambers the first king of the Romanov dynasty - Mikhail Fedorovich. At the age of 16, he was elected to the throne, thus marking the beginning of a 300-year dynasty. It was from these chambers that Tsarina Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina-Yuryeva, the first wife and mother of Fyodor Ioannovich, the last tsar of the Rurik dynasty, was born.

Initially, in the 15th century, the farmstead of the merchants Khovrins, who built a white stone basement for storing expensive goods, and the first estate buildings were located on this site. Later, the boyars Yuryevs-Romanovs became the owners, under whom the courtyard became a vast estate - stone chambers appeared with numerous courtyard buildings, glaciers and barns. Boyars were interested Western culture and maintained relations with the English neighbors who lived on, and in addition, they collected western books. The connection with Western culture and the high level of education of this kind at that time were also reflected in the museum's exposition. In the 17th century Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich ordered to lay a monastery on the site of the family estate in honor of the family shrine - the icon of the Sign Holy Mother of God. And the abbot of the monastery was located in the chambers.

Museum of the Chamber in Zaryadye (Moscow, Russia) - expositions, opening hours, address, phone numbers, official website.

• Tours for the New Year in Russia
• Hot tours in Russia

Previous photo Next photo

Museum "Chambers in Zaryadye" is located near the Kremlin in the center of Moscow. This is the only building that has survived big estate boyars of the Romanovs. In the 19th century, by decree of Emperor Alexander, one of the first museums in Moscow, the House of the Romanov Boyars, was opened in the chambers.

The Chambers of the Romanovs is a three-story building, two floors of which are made of stone, and the upper one is made of wood. Due to the difference in relief from the side of the street, only the upper floor is visible, all three floors are revealed only from the side of the courtyard.

Unlike most modern house-museums, which bore visitors with the monotony of the exposition, this museum has an amazing atmosphere of patriarchal Russia, and the diversity of the exposition will not leave even the most demanding visitor disappointed.

Museum exposition

According to the tradition of that time, the chambers are divided into the male half, which occupies the entire first floor, in which are located:

The “Dining Room” is the largest room on the first floor, where all the expensive dishes are put on the table, which appeared only at dinner parties to show the wealth of the owners of the house. In the corner is an authentic cupboard with mica doors.

Boyar's study, surprising with leather wallpaper covering all the walls of the room.

The library, which is connected by a separate entrance to the boyar's office. Here, in large chests, the most expensive thing was stored - books. The museum displays authentic 400-year-old tomes, including books on military affairs and the first book of the Old Testament.

Museum of the Chamber in Zaryadye

Upon reaching the age of six, the sons climbed from the women's half of the house to the men's, where they were equipped with a "room for older sons." Here, children received an education that, in addition to learning to write and read, included geography, as evidenced by a large outdoor globe located right in the room.

It is a special pleasure for visitors who have modern ideas about our “flat earth” to consider a globe on which some countries have not yet been marked and the ocean has hardly been studied.

Only from the room of the boyar and the room of the eldest sons can one reach the upper, wooden floor - the female half of the house - along a narrow, narrow staircase (which leaves an unforgettable impression). Contrary to popular belief and fiction describing the gloomy medieval ways of life of a woman, the third floor is surprisingly light and cozy. It consists of:

Senei - a small room where items of the noblewoman's wardrobe are now exhibited.

Rooms of the noblewoman with a corner of the child and a room - the brightest room in the house, where the noblewoman with her daughters or maids was engaged in needlework.

It is noteworthy that in each room of the chambers there is a red corner with icons. Having visited all the floors of the museum, you can go down to the cellars-storage houses, where the original masonry of the floors has been preserved and the chests with the owners' reserves from coins to cannons and rifles are presented.

If desired, the museum can use the services of experienced guides (maximum group of 25 people), who, like guides in time, immerse visitors in the atmosphere of four hundred years ago. Next to the museum is the English Court and the English Embassy, ​​which was visited by Catherine II herself.

Museum coordinates

Address: Moscow, st. Varvarka, 10

Directions: st. m. "China-Gorod"

Opening hours: Daily - from 10:00 - 18:00, Wednesday from 11:00 - 19:00, day off - Tuesday.

Entrance: Adults 350 RUB, schoolchildren 150 RUB, full-time students 150 RUB, pensioners 150 RUB.

Website: www.shm.ru Prices on the page are for November 2018.