Zinaida Morozova’s Mansion hosts presentation of GlavUpDK’s and Vitaly Kalashnikov’s book

On May 22, in the Zinaida Morozova's Mansion (17 Spiridonovka Street), GlavUpDK presented a historical documentary book titled Secrets of Embassy Mansions. Stories from the Most Closely Guarded Houses in Moscow to the professional community. Foreign dignitaries were also present at the ceremony.

Deputy Head of GlavUpDK Evgeniy Moskovets and the book's author, professional historian, journalist, historian of Moscow and licensed guide Vitaly Kalashnikov opened the ceremony.

“GlavUpDK under the MFA of Russia sees architecture as a unique textbook on our Fatherland's history. Our company manages over a hundred landmarks, with each of them reflecting fates of their ages, talents of their architects, and personalities of their owners. For a long time, however, that knowledge remained mostly a domain of restorers and diplomats. Telling those stories to the broad public in a fun and exciting way was our ambitious goal. So, today, we present our first publishing attempt to you," said Evgeniy Moskovets.

He also expressed his deep gratitude to diplomatic missions for their unwavering support for the Days of Historical and Cultural Heritage drive, "Thanks to your openness, Muscovites get a rare opportunity to touch the past by visiting mansions that generally remain hidden from prying eyes. We are very happy to see you here today."

The Head of the Directorate for Promotion of Cultural Heritage of the Moscow Department of Cultural Heritage Svetlana Talalaeva and the Director of the Vladimir Dahl Russian State Literary Museum Dmitry Bak also addressed the guests.

The venue for the presentation was not chosen randomly: the mansion of Zinaida Morozova was the place where guests could expect not just an introduction to the book, but a veritable historical experiment. The first and so far only performance of the immersive show titled “Secrets of Moscow Mansions. The Morozovs' Housewarming Party” took place on the presentation day.

Acting as a guide through ages past, Vitaly Kalashnikov introduced the guests to personalities from the story in question: Zinaida Morozova, her husband Savva, architect Fyodor Schechtel and artist Mikhail Vrubel. Guests listened to Feodor Chaliapin, just as they had at that Morozovs' housewarming party in 1897, while Maxim Gorky shared his views of the owners' lives, principles, and habits.

The introduction to the main characters continued among the unique mansion's historical interiors: the guests got an opportunity to learn what Schechtel himself, along with Vrubel and Gorky, thought about the house's structure. That way, the show became a living lesson in the history of architecture and everyday life of Moscow at the turn of the 19th – 20th centuries, enlightening and emotional at the same time.

Secrets of Embassy Mansions. Stories from the Most Closely Guarded Houses in Moscow tells about 16 Moscow mansions, veritable architectural gems, now managed by GlavUpDK.  In a fun and engaging manner, Vitaly Kalashnikov reveals the fates of their owners and architects, their entanglements and memorable events of ages past.