Burial of Soviet artists at the Novodevichy cemetery. Yeltsin's grave and government officials at Novodevichy Cemetery


Located near the Sportivnaya metro station in Moscow, the Novodevichy Cemetery is known primarily for the fact that there are many graves of celebrities on its territory. It is because of this that the necropolis attracts the attention of tourists and people interested in the historical past of Russia, personalities outstanding people.

History of the necropolis

WITH The cemetery received its name due to its proximity to the Novodevichy Convent. Official documents about scheduled burials here date back to 1898, and its opening took place in 1904. The expansion of the capital and the increase in its population inevitably entailed an increase in the territory of the cemetery. Official decrees on the inclusion of nearby territories into the necropolis were issued twice:

  • in 1949, the so-called New Novodevichy cemetery was formed to the south of the ancestral territory;
  • at the end of the 70s. It was decided to create the Newest Novodevichy Cemetery.

As a result of these expansions to this moment The territory of the necropolis is approximately 7.5 hectares, and over 26 thousand people are buried here. The importance of Novodevichy as a cultural site is evidenced by the UNESCO decree on its inclusion in the list of one hundred most important necropolises in the world.

Initially, its deceased novices were buried on the lands adjacent to the monastery by order of the Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily III. Over time, graves of ordinary Muscovites began to appear. Since the middle of the 17th century, news appears in sources about the departure on the territory of the monastery cemetery funeral rite over the deceased daughters of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. Before this, the necropolis of the ruling dynasty was the Kremlin Archangel Cathedral. The burials of representatives of the reigning dynasty far from the main necropolis are explained by two reasons:

The burials of members of the ruling dynasty at Novodevichy did not make this cemetery a place for the posthumous resting place of privileged persons. A certain tendency towards this has been observed since the second half of the 19th century century. There are more and more graves of intellectuals and successful merchants. Largely thanks to this, the decrees of 1898 and 1904 were passed, and the cemetery area was fenced off.

The revolution of 1917 stopped for some time the process of turning Novodevichy into

necropolis for the elite. Since then, funerals of ordinary Muscovites have been held here. But already in 1922, the territory of the cemetery was declared a museum. Conducted restoration work, and to increase the attractiveness of the place, a large square with picturesque alleys is being created. However, the latter led to the destruction and damage of old graves.

By decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of 1927, the territory of the cemetery was reserved for the burial of persons who occupied high position in society. At the same time, the necropolis was reorganized. The historical burial sites were divided into four sectors. Subsequently, four more were added to them: on their territory you can find graves only from the 20th century.

In connection with the increase in the number of deceased people associated with the growth of the population of Moscow, a columbarium that is still in operation was opened, where urns with the ashes of the deceased are located. Currently, the columbarium houses over seven thousand urns.

As already mentioned, the special status of the cemetery is associated with the abundance of graves here famous people. Most of them are marked by monuments made by recognized sculptors. Among those celebrities who are buried at the Novodevichy cemetery, Several groups can be distinguished:

Monument to Yeltsin

Perhaps the most famous burial is the grave, a photo of which is attached below. This is the grave of the first elected president Russian Federation- Boris Nikolaevich Yeltsin (died April 23, 2007). At first, at the burial site there was a traditional small hill and a wooden Orthodox cross. Later, as an assessment of Yeltsin’s merits in the formation of a new Russian statehood, his grave was “covered” with a marble Russian tricolor.

Tombstone N.S. Khrushchev

The monument to Khrushchev at the Novodevichy cemetery was made by avant-garde sculptor Ernst Neizvestny. During the moves when Nikita Sergeevich headed the Soviet Union, he harshly criticized the exhibition of works contemporary art. In fact, this meant a ban on creating. However, after being removed from power, Khrushchev reconsidered his views. Therefore, his son Sergei personally turned to Neizvestny with a request to design a monument for his father.

In his work, the sculptor symbolically expressed the duality of the nature of the former general secretary. The monument represents the golden head of Khrushchev, standing in a white marble niche against a background of black granite. This is exactly how Nikita Sergeevich is remembered by society: always wanting the good of his country, he made monstrous mistakes that cost dearly to the economy and foreign policy.

It should be noted that the Brezhnev authorities reacted coolly to the idea of ​​the Unknown. Some saw in the black granite a hint of the stagnation that gripped the country in the 70s. With great difficulty, the family of the deceased managed to obtain permission to install a monument by Neizvestny.

Not all famous people wanted to be buried in a prestigious place. For example, Vasily Shukshin really wanted to be taken to Siberia, where he was born, after his death. His mother insisted on the same thing. But Shukshin’s significance for Soviet culture in the eyes of the authorities seemed to be a more important factor in comparison with the last will of the deceased and the wishes of his family.

For the Minister of Internal Affairs Soviet Union Andrei Gromyko's grave at Novodevichy turned out to be a kind of demotion in status. The fact is that it was originally planned to bury his body near the Kremlin wall, as was done with the most prominent political figures of the Soviet era. But the situation changed, the USSR entered a period of severe crisis and was falling apart before our eyes. Burial on the territory of the Kremlin has lost its relevance.

Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation in 1998-1999. Evgeny Maksimovich Primakov was also buried at Novodevichy against his will. He wanted to rest next to his wife at the Kuntsevskoye cemetery, but according to the instructions of the authorities, his wish was ignored. The only thing in which his last will was respected was the poem engraved on the gray granite monument: “ I firmly decided: to be in the harness until the end, until I’m exhausted, until I fall. And if it becomes unbearably hard, then even then I will not leave the road.”It was written by Evgeniy Maksimovich himself.

Monument as a symbol

Most of the tombstones at Novodevichy reflect the professional side of the activities of the people buried there. For example, General Lebed is forever imprinted in his jacket, decorated with all the medals and insignia he received. The grave of TV presenter and traveler Yuri Senkevich is decorated with a sculptural wave with a reed vessel in memory of his sailing on the boats "Ra" and "Tigris" with Thor Heyerdahl.

The famous Russian clown and remembered for his role as the Goonie in the comedies of Leonid Gaidai, Yuri Nikulin, was also buried at Novodevichy. His monument is bronze sculpture sitting with a cigarette between her fingers next to the grave. The monument to another famous actor, Vyacheslav Tikhonov, is a sculptural image of Stirlitz, his character from the popular film series “Seventeen Moments of Spring.”

In recognition of the merits of famous writers, their monuments are supplemented artistic depiction characters in their works. The tombstone of Alexander Fadeev was created according to this principle: his monument is surrounded by sculptural images of characters from the novel “The Young Guard”. Popular with Soviet power After his death, Alexey Tolstoy is also in the company of the heroes of his novels: “Walking through Torment” and “Peter the First”.

The poet Andrei Voznesensky personally developed the design of his tombstone. According to his plan, a split tombstone made of dark granite was installed on the grave, along which a massive ball was rolling down. Only a small crucifix keeps the ball from falling completely. At the request of the poet, there are no images or sculptures on his grave.

The history of the burial of N.V. Gogol

Every cemetery has dark legends associated with it.. For Novodevichy, such a legend arose thanks to his reburial in 1931 famous writer Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol. This happened at the height of anti-religious policies in the USSR. Then a decision was made to liquidate the Danilovsky Monastery and the cemetery belonging to it. While moving the ashes of the deceased, the coffin was opened and it was discovered that the inside of its lid was scratched. Hence the rumors that the writer was buried alive.

The old monument to Gogol (a black stone with an uneven surface symbolizing Golgotha) was given as a tombstone to another Russian writer - Mikhail Bulgakov. Instead, a sculptural image of Gogol was installed with a dedication on behalf of the Soviet government. Only in 2009 the writer’s tombstone acquired its original appearance..

Excursion programs

Even this cursory review allows us to form a certain idea about the significance of the necropolis in the complex cultural heritage countries. Excursions are constantly held here for both domestic and foreign tourists, and special guides and maps or diagrams by section are compiled. Throughout the week, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the entire Novodevichy Cemetery is open to the public. The address is easy to remember: Moscow, Luzhitsky proezd, 2.

For those who do not have the opportunity to personally join a tour group, virtual tours are offered, which are also much cheaper than standard ones. But people who believe that such a service cannot be compared with the magical feeling that arises when entering the territory where people like Vishnevsky or Chernyakhovsky are buried should, of course, go there in person. Exist different kinds transport to the Novodevichy Cemetery: you can get to it by metro, and get there by trolleybus or taxi.





The Vagankovskoe cemetery is probably the most famous necropolis of our time. The history of this place began almost three hundred years ago and continues to this day. It is unlikely that it will ever be possible to establish an accurate list of everyone who was buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery at least in the last hundred years, not to mention its entire long history. The list of the deceased who found their final refuge here, according to the most conservative estimates, should have numbered about half a million names. However, many burials remain unnamed.

and the foundation of the cemetery

One of the last outbreaks of the plague in Russia in 1770-1772 was marked not only by mass death of the population, but also by significant popular unrest in Moscow and its surroundings. The unrest was suppressed, however, by decree of Empress Catherine II, dead citizens were prohibited from being buried within the city.

The preventive sanitary measure had an effect, the disease receded, and a necropolis grew up near Moscow in the village of Novoye Vagankovo, where ordinary Muscovites were buried.

Who is buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery? Of course, no one kept a list of burials in those distant times. In the 18th and 19th centuries, those who died from epidemics, soldiers who fell in the Battle of Borodino, those who died on the Khodynka Field and many other victims of wars and historical tragedies found their final refuge there.

Great Patriotic War added to the Vagankovsky cemetery of mass graves and monuments to the defenders of the city.

Do they remember everyone? Who is buried at the Vagankovsky cemetery among celebrities

Today, the biggest thing we associate with the graves of everyone’s favorite actors, cultural and artistic figures, politicians - our contemporaries. Meanwhile, many people forget that, in fact, this place became a necropolis of celebrities more than a hundred years ago. If at the very beginning of its history the Vagankovskoe cemetery could only “boast” of nameless mass graves and modest graves of ordinary people, then half a century later it turned into a resting place greatest people of his era.

Among those buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery, famous names 19th century. These are politicians, military men, cultural figures, writers and artists. Next to the magnificent graves of famous historical figures modest burials are now adjacent to almost forgotten people, whose names are known only to specialists.

Memory of the Decembrist uprising

The list of those buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery can begin with the names of the Decembrists. Currently, only seven of their graves have survived. In one fence there are the tombstones of Alexander Filippovich Frolov and Pavel Sergeevich Bobrishchev-Pushkin, next to them is a pink marble stele of Ivan Nikolaevich Khotyaintsev.

On the main alley is the grave of Mikhail Alexandrovich Bestuzhev. His daughters and sister Elena are also buried here. great woman, whose name is undeservedly forgotten by descendants. It was she who preserved for history the most valuable archival artifact - the famous Bestuzhev gallery of portraits of the Decembrists, taking it out of Siberia after the death of her brother.

A monument made of black granite crowns the grave of the Decembrist Alexander Petrovich Belyaev, and the grave of Nikolai Alexandrovich Zagoretsky is nearby.

Friends of A. S. Pushkin

Few people remember where the burial place of the great poet himself is. No, of course, he does not rest in the Vagankovskoye cemetery. The grave of the classic of Russian literature is located in the Svyatogorsk Monastery, in the Pskov region. Nevertheless, of those of his contemporaries who are buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery, many were closely connected with A.S. Pushkin and his family.

Thus, near the church ensemble there are the graves of the poet’s close friends: Count Fyodor Ivanovich Tolstoy and the famous theatrical figure and composer Alexei Nikolaevich Verestovsky.

Masters of the Brush

Famous people buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery did not always, after ending their lives, come to this place in glory and honor. Especially if we were talking about creative people who devoted all their strength to art and thought little about worldly affairs.

Host outstanding artists, painters and graphic artists who are buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery are impressive. Vasily Andreevich Tropinin is buried in a modest grave - great painter era of romanticism and the founder of realistic portraits in Russian painting. He left more three thousand portraits of his contemporaries and precisely his talent and skill of the brush Russian art owes to the development of realism and the emergence of the type portrait.

V. A. Tropinin was the first famous artist, buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery. Following him, this Moscow necropolis became the last refuge for such masters of the brush as Vasily Ivanovich Surikov, Vasily Vladimirovich Pukirev, Nikolai Alexandrovich Klodt, Aristarkh Vasilyevich Lentulov and many others. The Peredvizhniki and avant-garde artists, illustrators, decorators, graphic artists and painters who worked in the 19th and 20th centuries are buried here.

People who were buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery and left an indelible mark on history are today mostly forgotten by their contemporaries. Many graves are dilapidated, some do not even have memorial plaques. Nevertheless, their names are gradually being returned.

The grave of the author of “The Rooks...”

At the Vagankovskoe cemetery there is the grave of the creator of the cult, or, as they say, “archetypal” work of Russian painting. Famous work“The rooks have arrived” has been known to everyone since school. However, few people know tragic fate its creator.

Alexey Kondratievich Savrasov is one of the founders of the Association of Traveling Exhibitions, a brilliant painter and teacher. Alas, last years he spent his life in poverty. Personal tragedies that the artist could not cope with, alcoholism and constant need led to the fact that he found himself in all alone, forgotten and sick. He died in a Moscow hospital for the poor.

Initially, his grave was crowned with the cheapest wooden cross and a modest inscription on it read: “Academician Alexey Kondratievich Savrasov. Born May 12, 1830, died September 26, 1897.” The boards on the cross rotted and collapsed, eventually it disappeared, and the burial place of the great painter was abandoned and forgotten for many years.

However, the words of Isaac Levitan about Savrasov turned out to be prophetic: “One of the most profound Russian artists has passed away... From Savrasov appeared lyricism in landscape painting and boundless love for his native land... and this undoubted merit of his in the field of Russian art will never be forgotten.”

Today, his grave at the Vagankovskoye cemetery is decorated with a granite obelisk with a laconic inscription: “Outstanding Russian artist Alexey Kondratyevich Savrasov, 1830-1897.”

The last journey of Melpomene's servants

The list of celebrities buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery is impressive. Paradoxically, the necropolis, which appeared as a result of the greatest tragedies in the history of the state, became a favorite burial place for theater and film actors, directors, musicians and composers.

According to legend, the tradition of burying people of the acting profession here came from one of the Moscow mayors, by whose decree it was instructed to bury acting people at Vagankovsky. Perhaps because this cemetery was the largest and it was quick and convenient to get to, which reduced the cost of funerals, which were often carried out at public expense. However, there is one more thing mystical coincidence: It was on the site of the future necropolis that jesters and buffoons settled in the 17th century.

Today, the number of beloved actors, musicians and singers buried here is difficult to accurately determine. The actors buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery were the idols of their time, and the glory of many has not been forgotten to this day.

At the entrance stands a snow-white iceberg monument in the constructivist style on the grave of Alexander Abdulov. The original monument-memorial in the form of film frames reminds of everyone’s beloved Mikhail Pugovkin. Nearby is the grave of “the best Watson in the world,” Vitaly Solomin. Actors Andrei Mironov, Oleg Dal, Leonid Filatov, directors and playwright, playwright and satirist Grigory Gorin. It’s impossible to count all the celebrities who are buried at the Vagankovskoye Cemetery who enriched the Russian and world culture. Below is a list (far from complete, of course, of celebrities not mentioned in the text):

  • - writer.
  • Alov Alexander - director.
  • Bogatyrev Yuri - actor.
  • Braginsky Emil - playwright.
  • Burkov Georgy - actor.
  • Balter Alla - actress.
  • Vitsin Georgy - actor.
  • Voroshilov Vladimir - presenter.
  • Spiridonov Vadim - actor.
  • Garin Erast is an actor.
  • Glebov Peter - actor.
  • Gluzsky Mikhail - actor.
  • Dvorzhetsky Evgeniy - actor.
  • Kaverin Veniamin - writer.
  • Mikhail Kononov - actor.
  • Levtova Marina - actress.
  • Liepa Maris - dancer.
  • Vlad Listyev is a journalist.
  • Migulya Vladimir - composer.
  • Rozov Victor - playwright.
  • Rostotsky Andrey - actor.
  • Sazonova Nina - actress.
  • Samoilov Vladimir - actor.
  • - actor.
  • Streltsov Eduard is an athlete.
  • Tanich Mikhail - poet.
  • Seraphim Tulikov - composer.
  • Fedorova Zoya - actress.
  • Leonid Kharitonov - actor.
  • Chekan Stanislav - actor.
  • Chukhrai Grigory is a film director.
  • Yumatov Georgy - actor.
  • Yashin Lev is an athlete.

Two graves of one genius

There is also a monument to Vsevolod Meyerhold. Tragic, like the life of the director himself, the fate of his grave. For a long time the circumstances and place of Meyerhold's death were kept secret. Only in 1987 did his real burial place in the cemetery near the Donskoy Monastery become known. A black stone stele with Meyerhold's name was installed on the grave of his tragically deceased wife Zinaida Reich 20 years before the discovery of the real burial place of the theater directing reformer.

"Faithful Galya"

The poet Sergei Yesenin is buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery. Rebellious life and tragic death The young genius of poetry attracted the attention of fans and admirers to his resting place. Alas, the grave of Sergei Yesenin is notorious. Neither a bust carved in a block of white marble, nor a granite plinth buried in flowers can erase the sad facts of the history of this burial. One of the cemetery legends says that at night the ghost of a young woman appears near the grave.

“I committed suicide here, although I know that after this more dogs They will hang it on Yesenin. But he and I don’t care. Everything that is most precious to me is in this grave...”

Perhaps this legend was based on the sad fate of his friend and assistant. A year after the poet’s death, she shot herself at his grave, leaving the famous suicide note. She rests here, next to her idol. The first inscription on the modest grave: “Faithful Galya” very accurately reflected the essence of her feelings for Yesenin and their difficult, drama-filled relationship. However, now the snow-white slab is decorated with long lines from the poet’s letter to her: “Galya, dear! I repeat to you that you are very, very dear to me. And you yourself know that without your participation in my fate there would be a lot of deplorable things.”

The series of suicides that followed at the grave of the “Moscow reveler” shrouded the place in an ominous veil of fatalism and misfortune. In total, 12 people committed suicide here - all women.

Idols of millions

It is difficult to count which celebrities are buried at the Vagankovskoe cemetery and what stories and legends shroud their deaths and resting places. The grave of Vladimir Semenovich Vysotsky was no exception. The slightly pretentious monument depicts everyone’s favorite singer and artist, as expressive and eager as he was during his lifetime. On one side there is a portrait, on the other there is an allegory monument, the leitmotif of which is the lines of the artist’s prophetic song “Fasicky Horses.” Pathetic, strange monument. Eyewitnesses to Vysotsky's funeral claimed that his widow Marina Vladi cried when she saw the tombstone and called it an ugly example of socialist realism.

Vysotsky should not have found his last refuge on the main alley. The authorities assigned him a place in the far corner. However, fate intervened in the person of the director of the Vagankovsky cemetery, a great admirer of the work of Vladimir Semyonovich. It was he who allocated an empty place for the funeral at the very entrance, where the singer rests to this day.

The tombstone of another great bard is distinguished by its modesty and brevity. Bulat Okudzhava is also buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery. The tombstone is in the form of a large boulder with an intricately executed inscription - the name of the singer and composer. This tombstone can rightfully be considered the most magnificent example of artistic minimalism.

One of the few graves still littered with flowers belongs to Igor Talkov. Another idol of millions, who died tragically at a young age. And his death is shrouded in secrets, rumors and legends, like many of his predecessors who were buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery. A photo of the singer in a frame with a carved wooden pediment, reminiscent of a Russian hut, is almost always framed with garlands of carnations and roses. The tombstone itself is decorated in neo-pagan Slavic style. On a black pedestal stands a huge cross made of bronze, the surface of which is decorated with Cyrillic script, and at the base of the pedestal the famous lines “And defeated in battle, I will rise again and sing...” are inscribed in gold.

At the grave of Igor Talkov, as well as at the grave of Sergei Yesenin, there were suicide attempts. Fortunately, in this case, suicide was prevented and the restless fans were saved.

Who are the saints buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery?

There are special graves in this huge necropolis. There are always crowds of people around them; people come here from afar with prayers and requests for help. One of these graves belongs to Father Valentin. Although he was never officially canonized, people sincerely believe in his intercession and consider the grave miraculous.

During his lifetime, Father Valentin was known for his kind disposition and open, generous heart. The poor and orphans, widows and homeless people turned to him for help. The priest took a sincere part in the fate of everyone who sought his protection and support.

It is noteworthy that the exact burial place of Father Valentin is unknown. The priest died in 1908, and in the roaring 20s they wanted to destroy his grave in order to stop the pilgrimage. In 1941, after digging up the supposed burial site, no remains were found. It is believed that, fulfilling the will of Father Valentin, he was buried two meters deeper than it was customary to bury the dead.

Today, at the supposed resting place of the holy father, there are two crosses, literally a meter from each other. The white one, stone, was erected by the great-granddaughter of a clergyman, the second, wooden, was erected by pilgrims. From somewhere there came a belief that it was here, away from the official grave, that the ashes of Father Valentin rested. Both crosses have flowers, candles, and there is always a line of people begging for help and thanking them for their intercession.

When telling your interlocutors about visiting a cemetery as a tourist attraction, you often see surprise and wariness in their eyes. How, instead of magnificent estates, museums and art galleries, did you wander among the graves and admire the beauty, decoration, and admire the sculptural compositions?!

Indeed, this does not look like a standard monument of architecture and art, but how much you can see and learn when you find yourself on famous cemeteries! Almost every big city have their own famous places burial places where tourists flock and where excursions are held. And there are plenty of people willing!

Novodevichy Cemetery

We invite you to take a walk through two of the most famous and significant cemeteries in Moscow - Novodevichy and Vagankovsky. On their territories rest the great minds of our fatherland, the heroes of the Second World War, statesmen, writers, poets, composers, actors, directors, singers, athletes - all these people left an eternal mark on Russian and world history. Our famous sculptors, artists and architects worked on a large number of monuments: M. Anikushin, E. Vuchetich, S. Konenkov, V. Mukhina, N. Tomsky, G. Schultz, many of them also found their last resting places in these cemeteries. Some gravestones are kept amazing stories, secrets and assumptions that remained unsolved (we recommend reading the versions about the reburial of N.V. Gogol, and also finding out where the stone on the grave of M.A. Bulgakov was taken from. - Ed.).

Cemetery Vagankovsky

Despite the cold and rainy summer, we managed to take advantage of several on sunny days and capture our walk in photographs. Although it is worth noting that a cloudy and gloomy sky adds mystery and mysticism, which, of course, changes general mood and impression of the place. It all depends on the visitor, on what emotions you want to receive in a certain period of life. There is a lot to think about here, and the silence and the feeling as if time has stopped around helps to clarify your thoughts and distract you from everyday worries.

Novodevichy Cemetery

The Novodevichy Cemetery is considered the main Moscow necropolis. IN Soviet time it became the second most important burial site after the Kremlin wall. The cemetery is located in the southwestern part of the city, in Khamovniki, on the territory adjacent to the Novodevichy Convent (Sportivnaya metro station).

The first burials appeared in the 17th century on the territory Novodevichy Convent. By the 20th century there was practically no free space left, and then land was allocated behind the southern wall of the monastery. The official opening date of this part is 1904. At the moment, the cemetery occupies more than 7.5 hectares, consists of 4 territories, where 26,000 people are buried.

The territory of the Novodevichy Convent is included in the list World Heritage UNESCO is one of the world's most beautiful burial sites, deservedly included in the top 10.

Monument at the grave pop singer, People's Artist USSR Lyudmila Zykina. The monument was made by People's Artist of Russia, Armenian sculptor Friedrich Soghoyan

Monument at the grave of a circus performer, film actor, TV presenter, director of the Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard Yuri Nikulin

Monument at the grave of the great Russian writer Anton Chekhov. Made in Art Nouveau style according to the design of the artist L. M. Brailovsky

Monument at the grave of the artist and landscape painter Isaac Levitan

From left to right: a monument at the grave of an outstanding architect, a representative of romantic symbolism and constructivism Ilya Golosov; monument at the grave of the writer, academician, count Alexei Tolstoy

Monument at the grave of the great writer Mikhail Bulgakov.“Golgotha” made of Black Sea granite previously stood on the grave of N.V. Gogol, in the cemetery of the St. Danilov Monastery, and then, during the reburial of the writer’s remains, the stone was sent to the cemetery workshop. In the early 1950s, “Golgotha” was discovered and bought by E. S. Bulgakov in order to install it on her husband’s grave. It is worth noting that M. A. Bulgakov was a passionate admirer of N. V. Gogol’s talent

Monument at the grave of the founder of children's literature Samuil Marshak. Sculptor N. B. Nikoghosyan. The monument is located in the Marshak family memorial

Monument at the grave of a talented teacher of world renown, public figure and writer Anton Makarenko. The monument was made by sculptor Vladimir Tsigal and architect V. Kalinin

Monument at the grave greatest composer 20th century, pianist, teacher, People's Artist of the USSR Dmitry Shostakovich

Monument at the grave of the violin virtuoso, teacher, People's Artist of the USSR Leonid Kogan. The monument was made by sculptor Yuri Orekhov in the style of geometric abstractionism

Monument at the grave of the composer and conductor Isaac Dunaevsky. The monument was made by art university graduate student P. Melnikova and architect L. Polyakov

Monument at the grave of the Russian writer, playwright and critic Nikolai Gogol. Initially, the writer was buried in the cemetery of the St. Daniel's Monastery in Moscow; in 1931, the graveyard was liquidated, and the writer's remains were reburied in the Novodevichy cemetery. The bronze cross from the grave was lost, and the “Calvary” was removed. Legend has it that this tombstone was brought from Crimea by Konstantin Aksakov especially for Gogol. In 1952, a monument was unveiled at the grave with a bust of N.V. Gogol on a pedestal, which was made by the sculptor N.V. Tomsky. And on the 200th anniversary of the writer’s birth, the authorities tried to return the grave to its original appearance.

Monument at the grave of the Russian and Soviet actor, theater and film director, winner of four Stalin Prizes Konstantina Zubova

Monument at the grave of the poet, playwright, one of the most prominent representatives Soviet literature and avant-garde art of the early twentieth century - Vladimir Mayakovsky. The poet was cremated, the urn with the ashes was kept in the closed columbarium of the Donskoye Cemetery, and in 1952 it was moved to the territory of the Novodevichy Cemetery. The monument was completed Soviet sculptor Alexander Kibalnikov

Monument at the grave of the Soviet aircraft designer Semyon Lavochkina, specializing in the creation of fighter aircraft. Family grave

Monument at the grave of the actor, film director, writer and screenwriter Vasily Shukshina

Monument at the grave of the aircraft designer, founder Soviet school aircraft manufacturing, "king of fighters" Nikolai Polikarpov

Monument at the grave of the Russian revolutionary, Soviet statesman and party leader Anastas Mikoyan

Monument at the grave of the Soviet military leader, Marshal of the Armored Forces (1944), Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR Yakova Fedorenko

Monument at the grave of a major scientist, a great military surgeon Nikolai Burdenko. His wife and son are buried nearby

Monument at the grave of the writer, poet and screenwriter Agni Barto. Family Memorial

Monument at the grave of the famous virtuoso pianist, conductor, founder of the Moscow Conservatory Nikolai Rubinstein

Monument at the grave of the composer and pianist Alexandra Skryabina. Work of sculptor E. A. Rudakov

Monument at the grave of a poet, prose writer, artist, architect Andrey Voznesensky. Family memorial. Voznesensky designed the monument for his mother’s grave together with Zurab Tsereteli.

Monument at the grave of the actor and director puppet theater, outstanding theater figure, People's Artist of the USSR Sergei Obraztsov

Monument at the grave of the famous actress, pop singer, beloved actress of many generations of Russians Lyudmila Gurchenko. The monument was made by sculptors Yuri Khorovsky and Yuri Shabelnikov

Monument at the grave of a singer with a rare timbre (lyric soprano), famous operetta actress, People's Artist of the USSR Tatiana Shmyga. Work by sculptors Daria Uspenskaya and Vitaly Shanov

Monument at the grave of a popular film actress Clara Luchko. Work by sculptors Daria Uspenskaya and Vitaly Shanov

Monument at the grave of the greatest opera singer with world fame Fyodor Chaliapin The basis of the monument was taken from Konstantin Korovin’s painting “Portrait of F. I. Chaliapin.”

Monument at the grave of an outstanding physicist, doctor of science, professor, Nobel Prize winner Vitaly Ginzburg

Monument at the grave famous actor theater and cinema, People's Artist of the USSR, State Prize winner Evgenia Evstigneeva

Monument at the grave Secretary General Central Committee of the CPSU, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, Hero of the Soviet Union Nikita Khrushchev. Job famous sculptor Ernst Neizvestny

Monument at the grave of an aircraft designer, academician, colonel general engineering troops, laureate of Lenin and five State awards USSR Andrey Tupolev. The monument was made by sculptor G. Taidze and architect Y. Belopolsky

Monument at the grave of the Russian statesman, the first president of Russia Boris Yeltsin

Monument at the grave Soviet painter, teacher, doctor of art history (1956), professor, director of the Moscow State Art Institute. V. I. Surikov (1943-1948), first secretary of the Board of the Union of Artists of the USSR (1958-1964) Sergei Gerasimov

Cemetery Vagankovsky

Vagankovskoye Cemetery is a monument of Russian cultural heritage. The official year of foundation is 1771 - the time of the plague epidemic that accompanied the Russian-Turkish war. Suffered from the Plague Riot Turkish army, and Russian. By order of Empress Catherine II, those who died from the plague could not be buried within the city, so the lands near the village of Vagankova were given over for the mass burial of ordinary Muscovites. The cemetery was filling with graves unknown people from slums, poor peasants and petty officials until the 19th century - before the appearance of the first burials of prominent personalities.

On the territory of the Vagankovskoye cemetery, more than 100 thousand burials are related to tragic events our history. Here are mass graves those who fell in the Battle of Borodino (1812); monuments to the victims of the Khodynka stampede (1896) and Stalinist repressions (1930); graves of the defenders of Moscow (1941) and victims of the August putsch (1991). Also buried on Vagankovsky are those killed in the terrorist attack on Dubrovka (2002).

The Church of the Resurrection of the Word was founded on the site wooden temple St. John the Merciful (1773) designed by architect A. G. Grigoriev in 1824

Monument at the grave of the Russian poet Sergei Yesenin. Made by sculptor Anatoly Bichukov

Monument at the grave of Soviet and Russian actor theater and cinema, film director, Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1986), People's Artist of the RSFSR (1991) Alexandra Abdulova

Monument at the grave of Soviet and Russian poet, bard, prose writer and screenwriter, composer Bulat Okudzhava. Work of sculptor Georgy Frangulyan

Monument at the grave Soviet actor theater and cinema, People's Artist of the RSFSR Sergei Yakovlev. The memorial was made by sculptor Vladimir Evropeytsev

From left to right: monument at the grave of the writer, poet and playwright Vasily Aksenov; monument at the grave of a famous pop artist, actor Zinovy ​​Vysokovsky

Monument at the grave of the legendary goalkeeper, the face of Soviet football, player of Dynamo Moscow and the USSR national team Lev Yashin

Monument at the grave of the theater and film actor, one of the most recognizable Soviet artists Mikhail Pugovkina

Monument at the grave Soviet rock musician, author and performer of songs with a pronounced civic position Igor Talkov

Monument at the grave of the Russian architect Petra Skomoroshenko. Family burial site, cultural heritage site

Monument at the grave of the Russian Itinerant artist, author of the landscape “The Rooks Have Arrived” Alexey Savrasov

Monument at the grave of the modernist architect, painter, who made an invaluable contribution to Russian architecture, Fedor Shekhtel. The architect personally completed the family burial and memorial design during his lifetime

Monument at the grave of the famous Soviet bard, theater and film actor Vladimir Vysotsky. Work of sculptor Alexander Rukavishnikov

Monument at the grave of the outstanding opera and pop singer, soloist Bolshoi Theater(since 1975) Yuri Gulyaev

Monument at the grave of the inventor, rocketry specialist, Hero of Socialist Labor Nikolai Tikhomirov(cover name, real name – Nikolai Viktorovich Sletov)

Monument at the grave of the Soviet theater and film actor, pop artist, People's Artist of the RSFSR Andrey Mironov. Buried next to his mother

If you liked our short excursion, then throw away all prejudices and boldly hit the road to see famous cemeteries with my own eyes. Moreover, you don’t see all the monuments in the photo, and only your personal presence will help you feel the atmosphere of these places!


Urns with the ashes of stratonauts

Cemeteries speak better about the history of Russia than all the textbooks and howls of propagandists. Novodevichye is a cemetery where the founders of the state lie, their graves are the foundation of Russia.

Novodevichye is the second most important cemetery in Russia. The first is the Mausoleum and the Kremlin wall. But today Novodevichye is becoming the main burial place for distinguished persons.

There are never many people at Novodevichy (unless someone important is being buried, but there are very few significant people these days). During a 4-5 hour tour of the cemetery, it’s good if you meet 30-40 people. This does not count foreign tourists - they are brought in large groups, but they are led to see only 10-15 “main” graves - Yeltsin, Chaliapin, Nadezhda Alliluyeva, etc. Most of the tombstones, fences and monuments are unkempt, rickety, areas are overgrown with weeds, and the inscriptions have been erased by time. There are a lot of thrushes and starlings in the tree branches, but for some reason there are no crows at all.


Alfred Schnittke

Arkady Raikin

Belaa Akhmadullina

Artyom Borovik, journalist

Nobel laureate, academician Ginzburg

Legendary personality - Ari Abramovich Sternfeld. Dry lines of biography about him:

He calculated and theoretically studied many space flight trajectories, determining the energetically optimal ones. These trajectories, with a preliminary distance from the target, allowing significant fuel savings, are called “Sternfeld”. He introduced the concept of cosmic velocities and calculated their starting values. Formulated the problem of the existence of “space navigation seasons.” The terms “cosmonautics”, “first escape velocity” were introduced by him for the first time in his book “Introduction to Cosmonautics” (1934; in Russian - Moscow, 1937). For the first time, he applied the theory of relativity to analyze interstellar flights, to improve the accuracy of trajectory calculations, and proved that reaching the stars is, in principle, possible during a human lifetime.

Back in 1932, Sternfeld, at the invitation of the People's Commissariat of Heavy Industry, came to Moscow to formalize his project on an android robot. Android, like two other inventions: devices for recording the movements of human organs and a screw press with controlled force, Sternfeld proposed using when performing labor-intensive and hazardous work on earth and in space.

In 1934, through the USSR Trade Representation in Paris, Sternfeld transferred a copy of his typewritten manuscript to French“Initiation à la Cosmonautique” (“Introduction to Cosmonautics”) in Moscow.

A year later, in June 1935, having left almost all of his scientific and personal archives with his parents in Lodz and taking only the essentials, he and his wife came to the Soviet Union for permanent residence.”

Well, then there is theoretical and practical work in closed research institutes for astronautics. Interestingly, it was Sternfeld who first introduced Europe to Tsiolkovsky, whom he considered his teacher, corresponded and was friends with him until his death. In 1932, he translated and published part of Tsiolkovsky's works. French newspaper communists "Humanité". Then Tsiolkovsky sent him his photograph, and the world saw the face of the Russian cosmologist for the first time on the pages of Western media.

Surgeon Bakulev

Poet Velimir Khlebnikov and his relatives

General Eternal and his wife. And what is Pyotr Zigmundovich “Vernon Kress” (writer Demant) doing in this grave?

He is a subject of Austria-Hungary, lived in Bukovina. After the collapse of the empire, he graduated from universities in Brno and Aachen, Germany, and served as an officer in the Romanian army (Bukovina then went to Romania). In 1940 he became a Soviet citizen. June 13, 1941 among large group Chernivtsi Jews were arrested by the NKVD and on June 18 deported to Siberia (Narym region).

Peter Demant managed to escape from the settlement (Pudino), but after 5 months of taiga wanderings he was caught, accused of spying for Austria and sentenced to 5 years in the camps and 5 years of loss of rights. Soon after his release, he was arrested again and convicted on charges of counter-revolutionary activities. From September 1946, he served time in the Asino camp in the Tomsk region, then worked on a pig farm in the Usvitlovsky invalid camp, at the New Pioneer mine.

Released in 1953 under an amnesty, he worked for 23 years as a loader in the trading office of the labor supply department in the village of Yagodnoye. Magadan region. In 1975 he received a passport.

In 1978, he was allowed to move to Crimea. Having married Irina Petrovna Vechnaya, the daughter of a prominent Soviet military leader, he got the opportunity to go to Moscow with her. At the same time, without hope of publication, he began to write prose of a memoir nature. In 1992, the publishing house published a small edition of the writer’s book of memoirs about camp life, “Zekameron of the 20th Century.”

A number of mass graves are victims of the crashes of airships and the Maxim Gorky plane in 1936-38. The ashes of these people are mounted in the wall of the Novodevichy Convent:

Director Dziga Vertov

Several thousand urns containing ashes are built into the walls of the cemetery. These are mainly burials from the 1930s-60s. Very often epitaphs, poems, and parting words are engraved on the slabs there.

The grave of the first president of Russia - Yeltsin. There are very few flowers from fans of his work. Ironically, he is buried close to the grave of the magician Kio

And here is Kyo’s grave itself:

Young Guard Zhora officially died three times. The first time Zhora was confused with another underground fighter, thrown into a mine in Krasnodonsk by the Germans and Cossack collaborators. The second - at the end of 1944 on the battlefield, confusing him with another fighter. And both times the mothers sent funeral messages for George. The third death turned out to be real - he died of cancer.

Pyotr Andreevich Zalomov is the prototype of the hero of Gorky’s novel “Mother” by Pavel Vlasov.

Born into a working-class family, a mechanic by profession. Organizer of an anarchist circle in Nizhny Novgorod. He was one of the leaders of the May Day demonstration of 1902 in Sormovo, carrying a red flag with the inscription “Down with autocracy!” During the demonstration he was arrested, and at the trial he made a speech directed against the monarchy. He was sentenced to lifelong exile in Eastern Siberia.

In March 1905, with the assistance of A.M. Gorky, who sent 300 rubles to organize the escape, he escapes from exile. Together with the Bolsheviks, he participated in the Moscow December uprising of 1905, and organized military squads.

It is interesting that he joined the CPSU(b) only in 1925. Later life is reported briefly - “at economic and party work”:

Alexander Zinoviev, philosopher and dissident

Academician Igor Tamm

The graves of the numerous Ilyenkov clan, the founder of whose dynasty is Vasily Pavlovich Ilyenkov (1897-1967), writer. Laureate Stalin Prize. Member of the RCP(b) since 1918. Father of the philosopher Evald Ilyenkov.

V.P. Ilyenkov was born in 1897 in the village. Shilovo-Smolenskoye (now Dorogobuzhsky district, Smolensk region) in the family of a priest. After four classes at the Smolensk Theological Seminary, in 1915-1917 he studied at the Faculty of History and Philology of Yuryev University (did not graduate). In 1917 he was drafted into the army. In 1928-1930, editor of the newspapers “Our Village” and “Bryansky Rabochiy”. In 1930 he moved to Moscow, until 1932 he was the organizational secretary of RAPP. In Moscow, he lived with his family in the famous “writer’s house” on Kamergersky Lane:

Journalist and writer Ilya Erenburg

Joseph Hamburg, one of the famous militants of the RSDLP. There are the following lines about his time in the royal prison:

“The friendship between Hamburg and Frunze was cemented in the Alexander Central, where they were transferred in August 1914.

Politicians were placed together with criminals. The barracks were densely packed with prisoners, but there were three times as many bedbugs in it. Bedbugs shared food, people shared space. Clashes broke out constantly.

Someone poked Hamburg in the side: “Go to the bucket, you idiot!” Joseph, a militant convicted of barricade fighting, did not remain in debt, and many reached out for sharpening. A stabbing was brewing. Frunze jumped off the bunk and shouted to the criminals: “If you start a fight, we’ll kill you, you won’t get any bones.” Remember these words! It sounded pretty impressive. The classes fell silent, and since then quarrels have become rare, and the new “authority” was chosen as the headman: everyone understood that no one could protect the interests of the prisoners before the administration as well as this man.”

An interesting monument for 1962, especially since the one lying under it is an ordinary teacher

Academician Landau and his family

General Lebed, Yeltsin's failed successor

A rare case in Soviet era when the deceased is memorialized with an artifact of his or her field of activity

Chairman of the Communist Party of South Africa, adhered to the Stalinist version of communism, for which he was expelled from the party by his comrades-in-arms

Writer Yuri Nagibin

Actor Anatoly Papanov

Writer Panferov

Writer Yuzovsky

Directed by Ptushko (Ptushkin). The monument in the form of driftwood is 37 years old and has begun to collapse. A rare domestic director whose films received two international awards at once - in 1935 the prize of the Venice Film Festival for “The New Gulliver” and in 1953 the Silver Lion of the same film festival for “Sadko”

Monument to Raisa Gorbacheva; Perhaps the largest number of flowers is on her grave. But it’s sad that the thujas have dried up around the monument, and the caretakers don’t pay attention to it

English orientalist and, apparently, English intelligence officer Yuri Nikolaevich Roerich. He studied at three universities - the School of Oriental Studies at the University of London, the American Harvard and the University of Paris. He spent almost his entire life on expeditions in British India and Tibet. In 1941, he turned to London with a request to enlist him in the Red Army, received the rank of colonel of the Red Army, and served in the Himalayas during the Second World War. In 1957 he returned to the USSR

Old Bolshevik Alexey Isidorovich Rudenko. In 1939 he was sentenced to 5 years in the camps and 5 years in exile, and in 1954 he was rehabilitated. It is believed that he is the first author of an anti-Stalin poem on the death of Stalin, here it is:

So, that's the end. Fuller, friends, glass.
Forever, historian, mint this date:
Today the Cockroach lay down in the coffin,
And only the mustache threatens us out of habit.

Let the name of God not leave your lips yet,
And, harnessed to a gun carriage,
High priests guide
Funeral march,

Let the cannon muzzles roar,
And an expert in spicy dishes
Russia, fed up,
The last one gives the salute,

Let there be no end to false chants
And crocodile tears, -
He is dead. And no balm
Its rot will not be drowned out.

Monument to traveler and TV presenter Yuri Senkevich

Monument to film director Sergei Gerasimov.
Monument to the artist Sergei Vasilievich Gerasimov -

Satirist Smirnov-Sokolsky. The first director of the Variety Theater. Owner of the largest private library in the USSR - about 15 thousand volumes. After his death, the library was valued at 6 million rubles

The wife of Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky was born Sofia Mushkat. Auditor of the RSDLP cash desk in Geneva. She spent 8 years in Siberian exile. After the death of her husband - a major functionary of the Comintern and party historian

Monument pop singer Leonid Utesov

One of the most revered graves by fans is that of CDKA football player Fedotov. True, fans are too lazy to pull out the numerous weeds on the grave

Urns with the ashes of a family of Indian communists and intellectuals

Burial places of the large Khrushchev family

The modest grave of the former chairman of the government and “president for an hour” (he acted as president during Yeltsin’s heart surgery) Viktor Chernomyrdin

Monument to the writer Yulian Semyonov, on the reverse side - to his relatives Lyandres

Son of Felix Dzerzhinsky. Worker of the Comintern, since 1943 - in the apparatus of the CPSU (b)

Novodevichy Cemetery is considered the second most important burial place in Moscow. At the same time, it is one of the oldest. The cemetery appeared back in 1898 on the southern side of the Novodevichy Convent. More than a hundred years ago it was considered an honorable place for a final resting place due to the proximity of the holy monastery.

During the Soviet Union, Novodevichye turned into a real pantheon of national heroes and prominent figures arts and sciences. Only burial near the Kremlin wall can be more prestigious.

History of Novodevichy

The very first graves on the territory of the modern Novodevichy cemetery appeared in the 16th century. But then these were isolated cases of burials. Here some of the inhabitants of the monastery found their last earthly refuge. The number of their graves gradually increased. Over time, they were joined by the tombs of noble people.

In the 50s of the 20th century, the territory of the Novodevichy cemetery was actively developed. It was expanded by adding soil on the southern slope. The territory was fenced with a brick wall, which adjoined the ancient monastery walls. Now on Novodevichy there are 11 sites on which more than 26 thousand people are buried. To receive the honor of being buried in this place, during your lifetime you must be an outstanding person, a son (or daughter) of whom the Motherland could be proud.

Who lies here

Novodevichy Cemetery is, in a sense, Russian historical Museum. It is included in the UNESCO World Heritage Register. Some of the first “sovereign” personalities buried on its territory were relatives of Ivan the Terrible: his daughter Annushka, as well as his daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law. High-born nuns also found peace here, and in the past - the princesses Ekaterina and Evdokia of Miloslavsky, Sophia, the sister of Tsar Peter I, and his wife Evdokia Lopukhina.

Later, representatives of famous Russian families were buried here: princes Sergei Trubetskoy, Alexander Muravyov, Decembrist Matvey Muravyov-Apostol, Count Alexey Uvarov, etc. During the years of Soviet power, the ashes of the great author of “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka” Nikolai Gogol and worldwide famous opera singer Fyodor Chaliapin (the latter’s ashes were transported from France several decades after the death of Fyodor Ivanovich).

It’s interesting that in a sense, a real “grew up” on the old territory of the cemetery. The Cherry Orchard" Many famous actors of the Moscow Art Theater are buried here, led by the unforgettable Anton Chekhov and Konstantin Stanislavsky. In addition to the graves of these outstanding people, on Novodevichy you can find the tombstones of the final resting places of Mikhail Bulgakov, Vladimir Mayakovsky, Samuil Marshak, Sergei Prokofiev, Vladimir Vernadsky, Ivan Sechenov and other world-famous poets, writers, playwrights, composers and scientists.

Who can be buried at Novodevichye in our time?

According to official data, burial places are provided in 2 cases: for special services to the Fatherland and in the presence of ancient ancestral burials. In the first case, the Moscow government provides a place in the cemetery free of charge to a person whose services to the Motherland are undeniable. Such persons include outstanding scientists, figures of art and literature, politicians and so on. The state provides them free of charge with the opportunity to rest in close proximity to the great sons of Russia and automatically replenish this glorious pantheon.