Home for the elite: Rumors and facts about the legendary Stalinist skyscraper - a house on Kotelnicheskaya

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Stalin's skyscrapers have always generated a lot of incredible rumors and speculations. Since the 1950s, they have evoked trepidation, admiration, and great interest. Each of these stately buildings has its own history and individual charm. The skyscraper on Kotelnicheskaya is no exception, which has repeatedly appeared in feature films as a home for the elite and the ultimate dream of an ordinary citizen.

Khrushchev called the house unsuccessful

The main building of the skyscraper began to be erected in 1938 and took two years to build. The completion of this large-scale project was completely prevented by the war. Only in 1947, construction was resumed within the framework of the decree on the construction of high-rise buildings in the city, signed by Stalin. So the official date of the foundation of this house (like other famous Stalinist skyscrapers) is still considered September 7, 1947, the day of the celebration of the 800th anniversary of the capital.

The project was headed by Dmitry Chechulin, who was later given an apartment here. By the way, when Nikita Khrushchev came to power, the Stalinists began to be actively criticized for the irrational use of folk remedies, and the excessive pretentiousness and decoration of these buildings. The culprit of such "mistakes in construction" Khrushchev called first of all Chechulin.

Had to sacrifice lanes

The grandiose L-shaped skyscraper “overwhelmed” the old lanes (Bolshoy Podgorny, Maly Podgorny, Sveshnikov and Kurnosov) that were located earlier on this place, and also visually blocked the view of Shvivaya Gorka from the side of the embankment. This historic outskirts of the city has been inhabited since the 15th century, and at first there lived artisans of flammable specialties. The area was later called Vshivaya Gorka, and the embankment itself got its name in honor of the small settlement of Kotelnikov that stood here.

Shviva Gorka has a very rich history in general, and the development of the area itself was no less interesting, therefore, of course, it is a pity that this area fell out of the panorama of Moscow.

Granite and marble were not spared

The skyscraper on Kotelnicheskaya is a three-part building with 32 floors in the central part and 8-10 floors in the side ones. It is designed in the form of a star with three rays. The spire of the Stalinka is crowned with a coat of arms, installed at a height of 176 meters.

The building, made in the Stalinist Empire style, is very interesting from an architectural point of view. On the one hand, it was intended to show America our building and architectural power, and on the other, it recalls the tall tower-like temples and mansions of old Moscow and refers us to the charm of ancient Russian wooden architecture. At least that was the original idea.

Outside, the house is faced with granite (lower floors) and ceramics (upper part), and inside - marble, non-ferrous metals and expensive woods.

Construction: facts and rumors

A bold project for the construction of Stalinist skyscrapers from the very beginning came across a lack of necessary buildings and technical capabilities among the builders. They sometimes had to learn right in the process of work, and solve technical problems in real time. So, due to the weak Moscow soils (sand, loam, etc.), for the construction of such heavy monoliths, a super-strong foundation was required. Plants were specially created in Lyubertsy and Kuchin. Special tower cranes and special bricks began to be produced. So it can be said that the construction of the Stalinas accelerated the development of the construction industry in the USSR as a whole.

During the construction of the building on Kotelnicheskaya, as well as during the construction of the high-rise of Moscow State University, the labor of prisoners was actively used, for whom a special camp department was immediately set up, surrounded by a three-meter fence with barbed wire.

Participation in the construction of prisoners gave rise to the most incredible rumors among the residents. Some said that the prisoners had left their marks and mysterious inscriptions on the walls in the basements, while others said that especially objectionable political criminals or obstinate foremen were immured in the walls. There is even a legend about an attempt by two prisoners-builders to fly away on plywood wings from the upper floors of a skyscraper, which, according to one version, ended in their death, and according to the other, was crowned with success.

What was elitism

Stalin's skyscrapers, including the famous building on Kotelnicheskaya, were the first in the capital to have central heating and were supplied with hot water from the city's heating system. In addition, the stalinkas, of course, had a sewerage system, a water supply system, as well as an air conditioning and dust removal system. The height of the ceilings in most apartments is more than three meters. At the same time, the apartments on the upper floors were not so comfortable: they were small in size, not so high ceilings and poor layout.

The Stalin era on Kotelnicheskaya embodied the idea of "all in one", similar to what Soviet architects tried to do in the so-called communal houses - shops, leisure, everyday services are concentrated in one building. However, at Kotelnicheskaya everything was put on a grand scale. What other home can boast of having a movie theater? And the residents of the Stalinka on Kotelnicheskaya could go down from their apartment and visit the pompous "Illusion" (originally called "The Banner"), in which sometimes one could even see Western films that escaped censorship.

The bas-reliefs and ceiling paintings in the hall depicted happy Soviet people, which should have completely coincided with the attitude of the “special” residents. In general, the appearance of the skyscraper resembled a museum. However, this can be seen in those feature films in which the house was featured - for example, during the filming of the film "Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears", the interiors of the building on Kotelnicheskaya were used.

It is clear that the settlement of the house took place mainly according to social status, but not at all chaotic. In one part of the house lived mostly eminent scientists, in the other - high-ranking employees of the NKVD, in the third - celebrities of creative professions, and so on. Moreover, the lists of the first tenants were coordinated with Stalin himself.

This house was literally crammed with famous people, and if you list them all, you get an incredibly long list. Unless you can recall a funny story, how the poet Tvardovsky, having forgotten the keys to the apartment, asked to go to the toilet to Faina Ranevskaya, after which she then reminded him every time he met: "The doors of my closet are always open for you!"

High-rise in our days

In the main building of the house on Kotelnicheskaya there are three buildings, and each of them has its own concierge. In addition, in the building, of course, there are guards who know all the permanent residents almost by name, and also keep abreast of all the news happening in the house.

In the central foyer of the building, you can still see the preserved mosaic on the ceiling and marble cladding. As for the apartments, many of them have undergone changes, and this is not only renovation, but also redevelopment.

Among the tenants of the building, you can now find anyone, not just people of high status, since a fairly large part of the housing here is rented out. Well, the price of an apartment in this building is in the tens of millions.