Description of the attraction
The museum is a recreated city manor house of the 18th century, consisting of an ensemble of buildings. The center of the estate is a house on the Fontanka embankment that has survived to this day, in which the great Russian poet, senior contemporary and predecessor of A. S. Pushkin - Derzhavin Gavrila Romanovich - lived for almost 25 years, until his death in 1816.
In the middle of the 19th century, or rather, in 1846, the Roman Catholic Spiritual College bought Derzhavin's house, which underwent numerous reconstructions. In 1924, the poet's mansion turned into an ordinary residential building with a large number of communal apartments.
On February 21, 1998, by decree of the Government of the Russian Federation, a cultural and historical monument of federal significance “House-estate of G. R. Derzhavin”was transferred to the All-Russian Museum of A. S. Pushkin to accommodate the Museum of Derzhavin and Russian literature of his time.
In 2001-2002, a program for the reconstruction of the estate was carried out. At the end of May 2003, during the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the founding of St. Petersburg, the Museum of Derzhavin and Russian literature of his time was opened in the Central building of the estate.
The exposition of the museum, dedicated to the life and work of the poet Derzhavin in relation to the Russian literature of the 18th century, is housed in 16 interior rooms. It contains illustrations, manuscripts, magazines, unique books of the 18th century, furniture, paintings, graphics of the late 18th - early 19th centuries, portraits of the poet himself and his contemporaries, etc. The unique interiors of the 18th century have been restored with maximum accuracy: the Divanchik, the Straw Lounge, the poet's study, Derzhavin's Home Theater.
Restoration work at the poet's Home Theater was completed in 2005, a year later - in the Western building of the estate, and in 2007 - in the Eastern building. They house exhibition halls, a conference hall, an exhibition "Owners of the Russian Lira", etc.
The theme of Russian literature of the 18th century is reflected in the halls of the literary exposition located in the Eastern building of the museum. Here are engravings, painting, iconography, medal and applied art, a portrait gallery of figures in the history of literature and culture of the second half of the 18th - early 19th centuries, magazines, books and other relics.
Also in the Western and Eastern buildings there are permanent expositions, which show porcelain products of the late 18th-20th centuries, works of artists of the 20th century, and much more.
In general, in terms of the amount of information, the Derzhavin estate museum began to occupy a special niche in the cultural life of today's St. Petersburg. It hosts temporary exhibitions, a variety of literary and musical evenings, concerts, scientific meetings.
In 2008, the Guest Building of the Estate Museum was opened. This made it possible to create the most favorable conditions for the work of Russian and foreign scientists-researchers not only of Derzhavin's creative activity, but also of the history of Russian culture in general. In 2009, the Greenhouse was opened, which housed the Literary Cafe. The basis of the cafe interior is various green spaces.
In the summer of 2011, the complete reconstruction of the Derzhavin estate was completed by the restoration of the garden, known to the local population as the Polish Garden.
On the poet's birthday, July 3, 2011, the 22nd Festival of Russian poetry of the 18th century was organized in the estate. For the first time after the completion of the restoration work, excursionists were able to see the completely revived estate of G. R. Derzhavin.
It is difficult to find a house with such a rich cultural history in St. Petersburg. This is the uniqueness of the city estate of the late 18th - early 19th centuries, of which very few have survived in the city.
