Description of the attraction
On the territory of the famous Iversky monastery, with the blessing of Archimandrite Lawrence, the family tomb of the Panaev family was erected, which is located in the northeastern part of the monastery, namely in the garden. The chapel-burial vault is an elegant-looking chapel, which is located on an elevated plinth, in the inner part of which the burial vault itself is located. In it, under three sarcophagi made of stone, the ashes of several members of the Panaev family rest. The tomb chapel can be entered through a small lower door located on the northwest side. Above the door itself there is a massive paneled door that leads to the chapel. There is a small metal staircase on the left and right sides of the entrance. All four facades are decorated with triangular pediments. The roof has a rather complex tent shape and ends in the form of a low tent, which is crowned with a cross.
The construction of the tomb was carried out at the expense of Valerian Alexandrovich Panaev, who was a cousin of the famous I. I. Panaev is a writer, journalist and one of the editors of the popular Sovremennik magazine.
V. A. Panaev lived not far from Valday itself, namely in the village of Kuznetsovo, on the Shegrinka River. In this place he met his future wife - Melgunova Sofya Mikhailovna. In 1850, the wedding of Panaev and Melgunova took place, so the estate called Bainevo passed into their possession.
As you know, the Melgunovs, Panaevs, as well as their relatives, the Kvashnins-Samarins, belonged to the most ancient, primordially Russian clans. There is information that the Panaevs descended from Novgorodians by the name of Panalimovs, who were once ousted by Tsar Ivan the Terrible from the city of Novgorod to the eastern part of the Russian lands. It was on the new lands that they began to be called the Panaevs, and this surname was associated with the fact that they were in kinship with Ermak and Esaul Pan. In 1998, the genealogy of the Panaev family was published, which appeared thanks to the daughter of Panaev, Diaghileva E. V. Today the pedigree is kept in one of the manuscript departments of the respected Institute of Russian Literature.
Panaev Valerian Aleksandrovich was not only the builder of the railway, but also was the author of books and reports on railway construction and economics, the creator of the "Panaevsky" musical theater in the city of St. Petersburg. With the money earned by his brother Hippolytus, he decided to build a family tomb-chapel, which, first of all, was intended for their deceased mother, who at that time was buried on the territory of the Iversky Monastery.
The Panaevs' mother, Elena Matveevna, put a lot of effort into raising all her sons: Arkady, Iliador, Valerian and Ippolit. In 1836, she took her two youngest sons to St. Petersburg, which was the result of their professional education in the Corps of Engineering Communications. Throughout the entire period of study, Elena Matveevna always came to her sons, helping them literally in everything. In the middle of 1854, a false rumor reached her about the death of her son Arkady, and she was never able to endure such a severe ordeal. Before her death, she asked to be buried on the territory of the Iversky Monastery. In 1870, her dearly loving sons presented their mother with the last gift - a personal tomb, into which they transferred her ashes.
After some time, V. A. Panaev buried his youngest daughter Valentina in the tomb, who died after giving birth. When she was very young, she died before reaching her twenties. In 1886, next to his niece and mother, Iliador Panaev was buried, who throughout his life was an amazingly musically gifted person.
All the committed burials of the Panaev family are associated with the difficult fates of outstanding Russian people who received the right to be forever associated with the land of the Orthodox Iversky Monastery, as well as Archimandrite Lawrence, who was also buried in this monastery in 1876.
Description added:
Igor Panaev 25.07.2016
In the 60s, the burial place was plundered and the remains of the Panayevs were reburied, most likely behind the cathedral. Not exactly established.
So now the tomb is empty …
