Pearls of Russia

Museums and memorial estates

Reserve museum "The Breakthrough of the Siege of Leningrad"

The reserve museum "The Breakthrough of the Siege of Leningrad" is located on the southern shore of Ladoga Lake where severe battles for Leningrad took place in January 1943.

The German blockade of Leningrad when the city stayed cut off from the mainland for 900 days is one of the most dramatic episodes of Great Patriotic War (World War II). It was not only artillery shelling and air raids that the city residents suffered from, but extreme hunger and cold with no chances to replenish supplies. No one knows how many people died in the siege but some researchers report the stunning number of 800 ths.

It is here, near the village of Mar'ino and the town of Kirovsk, that the armies of the Volkhovsky and Leningradsky fronts closed up in the course of brutal combats and the siege was broken which greatly relieved situation in Leningrad, but the prolonged siege was fully lifted in late 1944 only.

The reserve museum "The Breakthrough of the Siege of Leningrad" includes the Diorama museum near Mar'ino, memorial complex "Nevsky Pyatachok (Patch)" in Kirovsk 3 km far from Mar'ino and monuments on the Sinyavinskie heights and the spot of initial meeting of the Russian fronts, and in the Oreshek fortress.

The Diorama located in the left bank ramp of the Ladozhsky bridge across the Neva River is the conceptual and decorative core of the reserve museum. It was opened to public on May 7,1985 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Victory Day. It creates a grandiose representation of the combat with the inward bent background bar of the diorama presenting painted scenes of the battle and the near part showing three-dimensional objects. The diorama was designed by Leningrad artists, the war and battle veterans Yu.Garikov, L.Kabachek, B.Kotik, N.Kutuzov, G.Moltennikov, F.Savost'anov and V.Seleznev.

The Diorama museum also features the unique collection of postcards and posters published in the war times.

Besides regular tours, special events can be arranged in the museum on order.

The exhibition hall of the reserve museum, situated in the town of Kirovsk (1.5 km far from the Diorama) houses diverse rotating shows.

Address:
Mariyno, Kirovsky district, Leningrad region; phone (262) 207 82

Open hours
11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Closed on Mondays and last Friday of each month