Pearls of Russia

Museums and memorial estates

Museum of Sevastopol Heroic Defence

The main avenue of Historical parkway conducts to a world known monument. It is a panorama telling about one of episodes of a 349-day's heroic defense of Sevastopol - reflection by the defence counsels cities of storm June 6, 1855. The author of a panorama - founder of Russian panoramic art France Alekseevich Rubo (1856-1928), professor of a class battle painting of applied arts St.Petersburg Academy, and then valid member of this academy.
Panorama "Defense of Sevastopol 1854 - 1855 yy." was opened on May 14, 1905, in commemoration 50 years famous epopee. The original round building with a dome, crown with rotunda, is erected under the project of the military engineer O. I. Enberg and architect V. A. Feldman. A diameter of a building - 36 m, height it also 36 m. Classical 2-columns portal, revetted with inkerman's stone, at the top of decorated by elements of the militarian decor: soldier's Georgy cross twine by Georgy's ribbon; at centre - figure "349", designating number of days of a defense.
Inside a building the picturesque cloth (length it 115 m, height - 14 m, area 1610 m2) and subject plan by the area 900 i2 located on a special scaffold is placed. On a plan of the artist, the spectator, by rising on special observation platform, as though appears at top Malakhov mound per day of assault on June 6, 1855. Just on Malakhov mound there were decisive events which have defined outcome of assault as "the first serious defeat of France-English army". During Great Domestic war fascist bombs have destroyed the panorama building, the unique picture has lit up. Risking life, soviet soldiers have taken out a part of a picturesque cloth from a flaring building.
After war the panorama was reconstructed by the soviet painters. The creative group consisting of 17 persons, was headed in the beginning by the academician V. V. Yakovlev, and after his death other known painter - academician P. P. Sokolov-Skalia. By studying events, about which the panorama told, and also rescued fragments of a picturesque cloth, photos, old booklets, the painters anew have written a picture, recreated the subject plan. The intense labour of collective painters was completed to 100 years of the first heroic defense of Sevastopol. In 1970 in a building of a panorama the exposition of a Museum of a heroic defense and liberation of Sevastopol telling about unforgettable events and heroes of a defense, and also about the panorama has opened.
In 1974 in outside niches of a building the marble sculptural portraits of the admirals V. A. Kornilov, P. S. Nakhimov, V. I. Istomin, A. I. Panfilov, F. M. Novosilskiy, captain 1 rank G. I. Butakov, general S. L. Hrulev, staff-captain A. V. Melnikov, glorified sailors Petr Koshka and Ignatiy Shevchenko, favorite of the defence counsels of city Dasha Sevastopolskaya (Mihaylova), "of the wonderful doctor" P. I. Pirogov, great Russian writer L. N. Tolstoy are established.