Moscow > Sights of Moscow

Sights of Moscow

There are more than 600 churches and monasteries in Moscow today. The rich heritage of Art Nouveau, popular at the start of the 20th century,- has a number of features unique to Moscow that cannot be found anywhere else in European architecture - they are in the area around Prechistenka Street, Ostozhenka Street and the side streets of Nikitskaya Street. You can make up a specific tourist route to see the monuments of constructivism ranking among the most notable contribution of Russian architects in the world heritage of urban planning. The most interesting experiments in Constructivism can be found in the buildings of workers’ clubs: the Zuyev Workers’ Club, the Rusakov Workers’ Club, the Kauchuk Chemists’ Club, the Frunze Factory Club, the Burevestnik Factory Club, the Likhachyov Factory Club, Political Convicts Club (now the Theater of Film Actors), the Vesnin Brothers’ Theater of Cinema Actors and the Svoboda Factory Club by architect Konstantin Melnikov. Incidentally, the world-famous Constructivist Konstantin Melnikov built a cylindrical house for himself — it is located in the city center in the Arbat district. Not only individual buildings and famous high-risers, but also whole urban ensembles of Tverskaya Street, Kuguzovsky Prospekt, Leninsky Prospekt and Leningradsky Prospekt, Prospekt Mira,

The Church of the Archangel Gabriel called ‘the Menshikov Tower” is situated in a cozy, quiet Arkhangelsky side-street. This is the earliest surviving building of Peter the Great baroque in Mos- cow. This astonishingly beautiful church has been keeping the history of ambitions of Alexander Menshikov, one of the closest friends of Peter the Great. The church he had built appeared to be higher than the Ivan the Great Bell-Tower, which violated the unwritten code of Moscow. Soon the lightning stroke the spire of the building, whereupon the building was not restored to demonstrate that the law is applicable to everyone.