Moscow in details/Kremlin
Moscow Kremlin is a historical and political complex located in the center of Moscow, the capital of the Russian Federation. It is one of the main attractions of the city and a symbol of Russia.
Today, the Moscow Kremlin is an administrative and cultural complex that includes historical buildings, churches, and museums. Inside its walls are famous structures such as the Assumption Cathedral, Archangel Cathedral, Annunciation Cathedral, the Kremlin Palace, Senate Square, Alexander Garden, and many others.
While walking around the Kremlin and Red Square, we can see the familiar picture of landmarks: the Kremlin walls, the State Historical Museum, and much more.
- The usual view of the Kremlin and surrounding buildings
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View of the Kremlin from Red Square -
State Historical Museum -
Voskresensky Gate
But let's take a look at some interesting details that are hardly noticeable or difficult to spot with the naked eye:
- Stars and metal flags on the Kremlin towers;
- The sculpture of the Coat of Arms of the Russian Federation and the gilded lions on the towers of the Historical Museum;
- Voskresensky Gate and its towers;
- Spasskaya Tower.
Kremlin Stars
The tops of the Moscow Kremlin towers are decorated with five-pointed stars made of ruby glass. They were installed in place of the imperial eagles of the Russian Empire on five towers – Borovitskaya, Troitskaya, Spasskaya, Nikolskaya, and Vodovzvodnaya – in the 1930s.
From 1935 to 1937, stars were installed on only four towers (except Vodovzvodnaya) and were decorated with precious stones. In 1937, they were replaced with ruby stars. Over the years, there have been three major reconstructions of the stars: after the end of World War II, in the 1970s, and in the 2010s.
- Star of the Spasskaya Tower of the Moscow Kremlin
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State Historical Museum Towers
The State Historical Museum is one of the most significant cultural institutions in Russia. Located on Red Square, this museum represents the rich history of Russia.
The museum was founded in 1872 and houses over 4.5 million exhibits, spanning from ancient history to the present. In its halls, one can find unique artifacts such as luxury items of Tsarist Russia, antique sculptures, ancient Russian icon paintings, weapons, costumes, and much more.
Walking near the museum, many have likely noticed that all of the museum's spires are topped with the Coat of Arms of the Russian Federation and several figurines of lions and unicorns. Let's take a closer look:
Upon completion of the construction of the Historical Museum, the spires of the towers were adorned with gilded metal sculptures representing symbols of the imperial house – lions, unicorns, and eagles. In August 1935, all the figures were removed from the spires. The eagles were melted down, but the lion and unicorn figures were successfully hidden by museum staff. In December 2003, the paired sculptures of the lion and unicorn were returned and installed on the spires of the building.
Voskresensky Gate
Voskresensky Gate (formerly known as Neglinnye, Lion, and Kuryatnye) consists of double passage gates located in the Kitai-gorod wall between the City Duma building and the State Historical Museum. They were first built in 1538 and rebuilt in 1680. In 1931, they were destroyed but were restored in 1995.
Today, two towers of the gate are decorated with two coats of arms of the Russian Federation, installed at a height of about 25 meters. It is very difficult to see their details. Thanks to powerful optics, we managed to capture how they look:
- Coat of Arms of the Russian Federation on the Voskresensky Gate towers
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Spasskaya Tower
Spasskaya Tower is one of the most significant towers of the Moscow Kremlin, located on Red Square. It is a passage tower built in 1491 by the Italian architect Pietro Solari. In 1624-1625, the English architect Christopher Galloway added a multi-tiered Gothic spire to the tower. This architectural modification gave the tower a distinctive, unique appearance. In 1937, a ruby star was installed at the top of the Spasskaya Tower, which became Moscow's hallmark.
We have already examined the Spasskaya Tower's star in detail, but let's take a closer look at other elements of the tower:
- Various figurines on the Spasskaya Tower of the Moscow Kremlin
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In these photos, we see interesting figurines of animals, each holding something round in their paws – it is curious what this might mean? Share your thoughts on the discussion page.
Author's Notes
These are some of the interesting objects located on the roofs of the Kremlin, the Historical Museum, and other buildings around Red Square. I hope the material was informative and allowed you to get a closer look at the history of our capital. Share this page with your friends and acquaintances, so I can have the motivation to publish more such material.