The Museum-Estate of G.R. Derzhavin is a memorial complex in the center of St. Petersburg, on the Fontanka River embankment, where the poet Gavriil Romanovich Derzhavin lived from 1791 to 1816.
Today, the former estate is a complex museum, which, in addition to Derzhavin's mansion with expositions and a Home Theater, also includes a Greenhouse and an adjacent Manor Garden.
Also in the complex of buildings of the estate there is a 3-star hotel Manor Derzhavin
View of Derzhavin's estate and the Fontanka River from Izmailovsky Bridge
The Derzhavins (Gavril Romanovich and his wife Ekaterina Yakovlevna) in 1791 purchased a two-story stone mansion on Fontanka in St. Petersburg, from the former owner - writer and translator I.S. Zakharov. After the house was completed, and the interior decoration of the building was made by Derzhavin's friend, architect N.A. Lvov, who also designed the infield (garden) with greenhouses and greenhouses.
At the end of the 1790s, a home theater was built in Derzhavinsky house, in which the performers of the roles in the productions were both friends and relatives of the poet and professional actors. In the "Big" ("Dance") hall of the mansion since 1811, solemn meetings and public readings of the literary society "Conversation of lovers of the Russian Word" have been held.
The house and the estate retained their original appearance until their owners passed away. In 1816 Derzhavin died, and in 1842 his second wife Daria Alekseevna died.
After that, the estate was empty for several years, until in 1846 it was acquired by the Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical College and then rebuilt and adapted by architects A.M. Gornostaev and V.I. Sobolshchikov for offices, archives and apartments of employees.
In the future, the ensemble of the Derzhavins' estate underwent alterations several more times, the most significant of which was the superstructure of the third floors in two wings made in 1901 by architect L.P. Shishko.
In 1924, the mansion was turned into a residential building with communal apartments, which led to redevelopment and almost complete destruction of the remnants of artistic decoration. The adjacent manor garden has also been modified.
In 1998, by order of the Government of the Russian Federation, the house was transferred to the All-Russian Pushkin Museum. Since 2003, work has been carried out to restore the mansion. Thus, the Central building of the mansion was connected by semicircular covered galleries with the former Kitchen (eastern) and Stable (western) buildings, as a result of which a small main courtyard was formed with places for recreation and a bust of Derzhavin. The House Theater, the Central Greenhouse and the historical appearance of the Manor Landscape Garden were also recreated.
Today, the Derzhavin city estate is a unique museum complex, where exhibition spaces with recreated interiors are located; evenings and various events are held, there is a greenhouse, a backyard garden and the Derzhavin Manor Hotel operates
Museum spaces in Derzhavin's estate
In the poet's house (Central Building) there is a museum of G.R. Derzhavin and Russian literature of his time, the literary and memorial exposition of which occupies sixteen interior halls.
Here, with the greatest possible accuracy, the large two-light meeting room of the literary society "Conversation of lovers of the Russian Word", the Straw living room, the Home Theater, the living room "Sofa", the poet's office, kitchens and a glacier are recreated.
The expositions of the rooms feature furniture, books and manuscripts, works of fine and decorative arts of the 18th and early 19th centuries. Here you can also see the picturesque portraits of Derzhavin by S. Tonchi, V. Borovikovsky and A. Vasilevsky. The dining room of the second floor is decorated with a ceremonial portrait of D.A. Derzhavina painted by V.L. Borovikovsky in 1813, whom the widowed poet married in 1795 and who "with her diligent care of the house" and estates managed to double her husband's well-being.
The most significant room in the Central Building is Derzhavin's office, restored according to a drawing by P.A. Kozhevnikov.
The furniture in the office was created "by the invention" of the poet: deceptive cabinets masking the entrance doors, a table with a "lifting tray", a sofa with bedside tables on the sides, in the drawers of which were stored "projects for service affairs" and "poetry".
Another highlight of Derzhavin's house is the Home Theater, which, when it was created in the late 1790s, completely reproduced the forms of a real professional theater.
Reconstructive productions of plays by G.R. Derzhavin, V.A. Ozerov, I.A. Krylov, V.V. Kapnist, Catherine II are performed on the stage of the theater, accompanied by scientific commentary by historians of literature and theater. Also productions based on literature and drama of the 18th and 19th centuries, etc.
InThe eastern building of the estate houses the literary exposition "The Owners of the Russian Lyre". From G.R. Derzhavin to A.S. Pushkin".
There are paintings, engravings, iconography, applied and medal art, a portrait gallery of literary, historical and cultural figures of the second half of the 18th - early 19th century, copies of handwritten texts on archival paper, books, magazines and other relics.
The exhibition halls also host vernissages of contemporary artists and exhibitions of private collections.
InThe Western building presents a permanent exhibition "In the white gloss of porcelain", where porcelain products from the late 18th - 20th centuries are located, as well as temporary exhibitions are held.
On the second floor of the building, in the Fireplace Room (a small cozy living room with a classic interior and fireplace), creative meetings and evenings are held, as well as various exhibitions.
The White Hall, which has an immaculate classical interior, hosts concerts and lectures, as well as conversations and discussions related to the opening of exhibitions.
The space next to the exhibition halls is occupied by a Media Center, which provides a wide audience with optimal access to materials from the collection of the Pushkin Museum, including lifetime editions of Pushkin's works.
The main exhibition hall of the Western Building is the "Blue Hall", decorated in the style of the manor of the 18th and 19th centuries: bronze chandeliers and candelabra emphasize the atmosphere of the era; blue curtains frame the windows, which overlook the Fontanka River embankment.
Manor garden of Derzhavin House
The current restored garden of Derzhavin's house reflects both the features of the early 19th century, the time of the highest prosperity of the estate, and the features of a later time.
The composition of the garden is based on an extensive meadow adjacent to a small regular part of the estate. Along the perimeter of the site there is a water system in the form of a narrow stream with three small ponds.
Entrance to the garden is paid. Sightseeing tours are organized for those who want to get acquainted with landscape art. The Manor Garden today is also an open concert venue for musical and theatrical performances and evenings.
Greenhouse of the estate of G.R. Derzhavin
Once upon a time, special greenhouses were built in the Derzhavins' estate for the cultivation of early, thermophilic and exotic fruits and plants, among which were: a peach greenhouse "with a green greenhouse", a greenhouse of "various trees and shrubs" (fig, laurel, grape), an "old greenhouse" where apricot and cherry trees and a "pineapple greenhouse" were grown.
To date, the building of the only Central Greenhouse that has preserved its foundation has been recreated. Lectures, literary evenings and special events are held in the former greenhouse.
Hotel in Derzhavin Manor
In addition to the museum and garden, the Derzhavin Manor is a 3-star Derzhavin Manor Hotel with free Wi-Fi, a restaurant, heating and a 24-hour front desk.
The rooms are equipped with a TV with satellite channels, a safe, a hairdryer, an electric kettle, a refrigerator, a work desk and a private bathroom.
Breakfast is included in the room rate. Link to the hotel
Practical information
The address of the Derzhavin Estate Museum: 118 Fontanka River Embankment, St. Petersburg, 190005.
Coordinates of the Derzhavin Estate Museum: 59°55'07.0"N 30°18'35.0"E (59.918611, 30.309722).
The nearest metro stations are: "Technological Institute", "Sadovaya", "Sennaya", "Spasskaya", "Pushkinskaya" and "Zvenigorodskaya".
Derzhavin's Estate Museum is part of the museum complex "All-Russian Pushkin Museum", which is the oldest Pushkin Museum in Russia.
Today, the museum complex, in addition to the Derzhavin estate museum, includes four more museums:
- memorial Lyceum Museum, which was opened in 1949 in the building of the former Imperial Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum in the city of Pushkin - one of the privileged educational institutions of Russia in the 1st quarter of the 19th century (founded by Emperor Alexander I in 1811 for the children of nobles).
From 1811 to 1817, A.S. Pushkin was educated at the lyceum. More about the Lyceum museum with photos...
- the museum-apartment of A.S. Pushkin on the Moika with a literary and monographic exposition "A.S. Pushkin. Life and creativity". More about the museum and the exhibition with photos...
- memorial museum-apartment of Nikolai Alexandrovich Nekrasov, located in the house in which Nekrasov lived from 1857 until his death in 1877;
- the memorial museum-dacha of A.S. Pushkin, which was opened in 1958 in the city of Pushkin (the former Tsarskoye Selo) in a one-story wooden building that has largely preserved its original architectural appearance. Pushkin rented eight rooms in the house, where he lived with his young wife from May to October 1831. Read more about the dacha museum with photos...
Detailed information about the Derzhavin Estate Museum and other museums of the museum complex, including opening hours, ticket prices, visiting conditions, etc., is recommended to check on the official website.
The website of the museum complex "All-Russian Museum of A. S. Pushkin": museumpushkin.
All accommodation facilities in St. Petersburg, including in the city center and more remotely from it, can be viewed and booked here
