Sometimes you wonder why we Russians strive to go abroad? On the one hand, in winter we can bask on the famous beaches, and on the other hand, we come and begin to tell what sights we have seen abroad. But we also have enough attractions in Russia and are not inferior to those abroad. Now we’ll talk about one attraction.

Just 25 km from Arkhangelsk there is this museum of ancient architecture and folk art. Look into the distance and from all sides, you will see the main wealth of the northern land - taiga snow. From centuries-old pines and larches, craftsmen built huts and temples several centuries ago, which have survived to this day.

Many buildings from small villages created by the golden hands of unknown craftsmen have survived to this day as real masterpieces. Peasant architects from Rus' were professionals - already in the 16th century there were “chip” bazaars, where everything needed to build a house was sold. All that remained was for the master to collect the logs in the specified order and the hut was ready. Thanks to this skill, ancient architects were transported and collected to the museum on the banks of the Northern Dvina from the surrounding villages and hamlets.

Let's imagine a little, plunge into the time when these unique huts, bathhouses, barns, mills were created, in soaring tented churches and small chapels (they are called “dream churches”). Over the centuries, each settlement has developed its own peculiarities in the construction of wooden buildings! At first glance, the buildings looked similar to each other, but in fact they are all different.

We fantasized, we hear the sound of an ax, the conversation of the masters, and before our eyes a hut appears, which in our time has become part of the museum.

The territory of the museum is divided into six sectors: Karpolsko-Onezhsky, Severodvinsky, Mezensky, Pinezhsky, Vazhsky and Primorsky.

When you get here, the first thing you see is a snow-covered road running into the distance across a field. To the right of it is an ancient bell tower, to the left they placed their wings - windmills. And your path lies directly to the central square of Small Karelians. In the sector of the Kargopol-Onega Museum there is the Church of the Ascension. Newlyweds in every city in Russia have their own customs of traveling and taking pictures near their sights. And newlyweds from Arkhangelsk come here to take pictures against the backdrop of this beautiful building, decorated with intricate, openwork carvings. There are ancient estates around the square. You need to pay attention to how the huts are built under the same roof with an outbuilding, the explanation is very simple - in the winter cold, both people and pets should be warm.

And it’s wonderful to continue this entire snowy path on a troika with bells, so that our fantasy and imagination will take us to the 16th century, so that for some moment we will be transported to that time.

The next sector of the museum is Mezensky. This sector contains the architecture of the northeast of the region. The layout here is completely different, because the entire settlement of the area was located on steep river banks. Reinforcement for buildings was built by special embankments-retaining walls with decking. The highlight of this part of the museum is the windmills. For its foundation, it is served by a pillar dug into the ground surrounded by a powerful log house (hence the name “pillar mill”).

The Pinega sector also had its own peculiarities of construction, and the peculiarity is that, according to the ancient Slavic custom, the huts were built facing the sun “in order.” During construction, ancient masters thought through everything to the smallest detail. Even the high pillars on which the barn town stands were made so that rodents could feast on grain reserves.

Well, the largest sector of the museum is Severodvinsk. Here we will see a large tented church - St. George's, built without one nail. Inside, the skeleton of the iconostasis in the Baroque style was restored. Outside the church we see a covered gallery (it was made for Gentiles and repentant sinners who came to the service). And around the temple we see how various monuments are located. Podvinia: peasant houses, barns, forges.

During the holidays, the wonderful sounds of chimes can be heard from the bell towers of Small Karelians. Unique collection bells and the exhibition "Northern Bells" is the legitimate pride of the museum. People come here to learn the difficult art of bell ringing, they organize music concerts. A common thing on the museum grounds - folk festivals. The holidays are bright and joyful: round dances are held around the huts, and all kinds of performances and games are organized. Suddenly we heard from afar the light ringing of bells and we are happy to see a painted sleigh approaching with three trotters. And nothing stops you from wanting to ride with the breeze along the snow-covered paths! Feel free to jump on the sleigh and move forward towards new adventures.

And how many wonderful places do we have in Russia like Malaya Karel! And I really want to visit these places and fall in love with the beauty of Russia even more.

Arkhangelsk Museum of Wooden Architecture "Malye Korely" is the largest open-air museum in Europe

For some time now, the Arkhangelsk Museum of Wooden Architecture “Malye Korely” has become a center of pilgrimage for researchers of anomalous phenomena. Psychics became interested in this unique historical exhibition immediately after the people's telegraph brought to them the news that traces of sheep and brownies were found in one of the huts of a wealthy peasant located here.

According to the museum staff, the eighty-year-old caretaker of this hut, grandmother Praskovya, came into contact with them. According to her, she never felt better in her life than in the household entrusted to her: “When I am on duty in the hut, I cannot leave the feeling that its former owners, who lived here many centuries ago, are doing their best to ensure that I spent her time as if home. It’s like I’m throwing off six decades. Honestly, in my Khrushchevka I feel like a very old woman.” This one wooden hut, as well as other buildings registered in Malye Korely, have living soul, caretaker Praskovya is sure.

This year, in honor of the Arkhangelsk Museum “Malye Korely”, the Bank of Russia issued a collectible silver coin with a face value of 25 rubles. And two years ago, the National-Cultural Autonomy of Pomors appealed to journalists to respect correct spelling historical names settlements and facilities on the territory Arkhangelsk region. Especially often, according to the observations of the head of the NCA of Pomors, Pavel Esipov, distortions are made in materials dedicated to the Lesser Korels.

The Arkhangelsk State Museum of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art of the Northern Regions of Russia “Malye Korely” received its name from the name of the nearby ancient Pomeranian village of the same name. From time immemorial, “Korelians” was the name given to one of the Finno-Ugric tribes that lived in the territory of Pomerania and subsequently merged into the Pomeranians. The word “korela” is spelled with an “o”, just like the words associated with it local names: Nikolo-Korelsky Monastery, the village of Korela and, accordingly, the open-air museum “Malye Korely”. All these words appeared hundreds of years ago before the title Soviet Republic of Karelia, therefore, the voluntary guardians of the historical purity of the Russian language urge us to treat them very carefully.

So don't confuse the names and watch the spelling. Otherwise, when going to the Arkhangelsk region, you may end up in the Republic of Karelia.

“Malye Korely” is the largest open-air museum in Europe; it covers an area of ​​140 hectares. Located 28 kilometers south of Arkhangelsk, on the right bank of the Northern Dvina at the confluence of the Korelka River. By the way, it is also the northernmost of all “open” museums in Russia.

The Russian North is a taiga region. Since ancient times, people have cut giant huts, bathhouses, barns, mills here from pine and larch, and erected tented churches. According to Russian tradition, there is not a single nail in ancient wooden buildings. The “nailless” structures of the Arkhangelsk “lefties”, contrary to popular belief, were not at all the architectural “know-how” of the architects. Most likely, according to museum guide Tatyana, this is why building material the ancient Pomors refused solely for reasons of economy. A kilogram of iron in Russia at that time was many times more expensive than wood - about the same amount of logs that would be required to build a spacious peasant hut.

The exhibition includes more than 100 civil, public and religious buildings, the earliest of which date from the 16th and 17th centuries. To be sent to the museum, the exhibits were rolled out on logs and then reassembled on the territory of Malye Korel.

The museum was founded in 1964. In 1968, the first architectural monument was transported here - a mill from the village of Bor, Kholmogory district. Now the territory contains all types of Russian windmills - tents (Dutch windmills) and pillars, and there is also a water mill. The largest windmill was brought from the premises of the former Kozheozersky monastery; it greets visitors at the entrance to the museum.

By the way, the first visitor appeared here in June 1973. And today, more than 100 thousand Russian and foreign lovers of antiquities visit the museum every year.

The main task of the museum is to preserve for posterity the unique creations of folk architecture, to show the life and way of life of the Russian northern village of the past. The peculiarity of “Malye Korel” is that it was the first open-air museum in Russia, where the landscape-environmental method became the main principle for constructing the exhibition. That is, when creating it, architectural, historical, cultural characteristics villages from which monuments of wooden architecture were exported.

The exhibition is built on the principle of sectors, each of which represents a model of the most typical settlements for the Russian North with a traditional layout and a full range of residential and outbuildings. Each sector is a fragment of the village, where not only individual buildings are important, but also their mutual relationship with each other.

There are six sectors in total. In Kargopolsko-Onega, where the exhibition begins, the layout of the settlement is reproduced, with estates located around the square where the Ascension Church of 1669 stands and the bell tower from the village of Kushereka.

The Mezen sector represents the architecture of the northeast of the region. The villages were located here along the steep banks of the river. To strengthen them, retaining walls were cut down and wood flooring. On these “embankments” they placed barns, glaciers, and baths closer to the water.

Between the Mezen and Pinega sectors there is a village of small huts, barns and a crane well. This is a seasonal settlement of Khornemskoe from the headwaters of the Pinega River. They lived in it in the summer, during haymaking or during forest cutting. The Pinega sector reflects the architecture and life of the Pinega basin, the largest tributary of the Dvina. The huts here are placed facing the sun, in “order.”

The largest and most architecturally diverse is the Dvinsky sector. Monuments from the vast territory of the Podvina region are presented here. On the central square is the St. George Church from 1672 from the village of Vershina. The iconostasis, made in the Baroque style, has been restored in the church.

The last two sectors – Pomeranian and Vazhskiy – are at the stage of exposition formation.

IN recent years in the museum great attention is given to the creation additional services for visitors. Newlyweds can order a unique wedding ceremony here in Pomeranian traditions, ride horses, play ancient folk games and fun, archery, listen to the bells.

In Russia, bell ringing has always been part of folk life. The bells called people to the temple for prayer, showed the way to housing for a lost traveler, and saved ships in bad weather. The noble guests were greeted with ringing of bells and celebrated big events. Therefore, any holiday begins in the museum ringing bells. And for connoisseurs there is a unique exhibition “Northern Bells”. In 1975, Malye Korely were the first in the country to revive this ancient art.

On traditional Russian holidays, such as Maslenitsa or Christmas, folk festivities are held on the territory of the museum. The annual holiday cycle of calendar calendars has been revived here. national holidays and rituals are held folklore holidays.

Arkhangelsk residents, especially young people, also love to come here. Only here you can see so many brides and grooms. It has already become a tradition - after laying flowers at the eternal flame in the center of Arkhangelsk, the newlyweds go to Malye Korely.

There are not many open-air museums, and, as a rule, they are created so that the visitor can clearly see the life of the peoples who lived in a certain place or see exhibits that people were able to create in past centuries, something that has truly become a treasure . For example, there is a very interesting Arkhangelsk Museum of Wooden Architecture "Malye Korely". In the Novgorod region there is a museum "Slavic village of the 10th century", and in Togliatti they opened technical museum OJSC AvtoVAZ. But the museum of the Arkhangelsk region will be described in more detail. We wish you pleasant reading!

Description and location

In the coastal region of the Arkhangelsk region, or more precisely, in the Uemsky rural settlement, there is an open-air museum, 25 km from the administrative city of the region.

The area of ​​the Arkhangelsk Museum "Malye Korely" is 139 hectares, where you can see the life of the former north, and this is actually the only place that tells about the life of former peoples. The entire museum is divided into several sectors, and excursions often take place in parts of the territory, such as the Mezen or Kargopol-Onega sector.

Story

The Arkhangelsk State Museum of Wooden Architecture "Malye Korely" appeared not so long ago, or rather in 1963, on the initiative of the architect Lapin. However, its opening took place only 10 years later, because it was not easy to recreate everything that is presented today. Not only architects were involved in the creation of the museum, but also architects, artists, restorers, ethnographers, for whom it was very important to preserve national treasure north of Russia and show it to tourists who come from all over our country and beyond.

For example, from remote areas of the region, from villages and towns, some buildings were brought that were of historical value and have survived to this day.

In 1983 the museum was included in the list European museums in the open air, and in 1996 it was included in the list of important historical and valuable objects of the Russian Federation.

Origin of the name

Separately, it is worth mentioning the origin of the name, which the museum received thanks to the nearby village, Malye Karely, and a little further there is Bolshiye Karely.

Disputes often arise about how Karelians are spelled correctly, through a or o, and where this word came from in the first place. Once upon a time, in the XII-XIV centuries, such peoples as the Korels of the Finno-Ugric tribe lived on the territory of the White Sea. It should be said that this is one of the factors that the word Korely must be written with an “o”; also in favor of this version it is worth noting the river flowing near the museum, which was called Korelka, and now Korely.

Why do disputes arise? But because in the process of akanya the unstressed sound “o” turned into “a”, which left a certain imprint.

Sightseeing tours

The Malye Korely Museum in Arkhangelsk, or rather not far from it, can be visited by anyone. Here you can simply stroll or take an interesting excursion, of which there are a considerable number.

The “Northern Village” excursion covers several sectors of the museum and lasts about 3-4 hours. Here you can learn about the culture of the Russian North, get acquainted with architectural monuments and the way of life of the region’s peasants. For example, guests will be able to see the chapel of St. Macarius, a mill from the village of Azapolye, Tropin's house from the village of Semuninskaya and much more. You can find out about the cost at the museum ticket office; this excursion is suitable for both adults and children.

The excursion "Travel to Kargopol" will take about one hour, where you can get acquainted with the culture of the Russian North and see buildings such as the Tretyakov house, the architectural ensemble from the village of Kushereka, and Pukhov's house. This excursion is part of the first inspection, so it may be better to take a sightseeing tour than such a small one. Also included are such excursions as “Travel along the Dvina” and “Travel along the Mezen”.

There is a very interesting thematic excursion for schoolchildren in the Malye Korely museum, a photo of which can be seen on the Internet, called “Visiting Daryushka”, the duration of which will be 1 academic hour and the children will really like it, where the hostess will talk about how the locals lived peoples, what their way of life was, what buildings were there and what they played with the children.

Another interesting thematic excursion is “Unheard of Unheard of,” which is suitable not only for schoolchildren, but also for students and adults. Here you can get acquainted with the traditions Arkhangelsk region, see the bell tower from the village of Kuliga-Drakovanovo, Popov’s house, Tretyakov’s house and the barn from the village of Kondratovskaya. The excursion will be held in folk costumes and will take one hour.

There are also thematic excursions such as “Curl the birch, curl the curly one,” “Northern Letechko,” “Our village is more beautiful than the city,” as well as a very interesting excursion “Wedding in the Northern Village.”

Events

There are a lot of different events taking place on the territory of the Arkhangelsk Museum of Wooden Architecture "Malye Korely", and museum staff ask you to familiarize yourself with the calendar in advance in order to choose the event you like best. There are events that always take place in the museum, repeating from year to year, such as New Year holidays, Maslenitsa week or Trinity festivities.

In September, for example, there is Horse Day or the Feast of Saints Florus and Laurus, or the Feast of Bread, September 10th.

Some interesting events, which took place in the summer of 2017:

• May 30 "Fire in flickering vessels", where a collection of devices that were used in past centuries, such as kerosene lamps, candles, portable lanterns, earthenware lamps, etc., was presented.
• June 25 - Festival of the Kunitsyn Estate, where you could get acquainted with this house, with the Kunitsyn family, and take part in fun.
• In mid-August, the event "Revived Crafts", where you could get acquainted with how people used to work and conduct their free time: knitting, painting, birch bark weaving, wood carving, etc.

The upcoming event, which will take place in September, is an event called “Leave the city to everyday life”, where various master classes, folk games and performances of various groups will be held.

Before you go to the museum, be sure to check out the official website as you can learn a little about the museum and read useful information, including how to get there and how much a visit will cost.

It should be remembered that the Arkhangelsk Museum of Wooden Architecture "Malye Korely" is located in the open air, so it is important to dress according to the weather, especially if it is in winter or early spring. If you want to visit the museum in the summer, you should not forget to take mosquito repellent with you. And in winter, it is better to plan a visit in the first half of the day, while it is still light.

Study in advance what exhibitions and events will be held, maybe something will not be interesting and it is better to reschedule your visit. The website sets out a work schedule for a month in advance and indicates which exhibitions are temporary and which are permanent. For example, the exhibition "Pukhov's House" is permanent, but the exhibition "Cross Image of the Russian North" is temporary and it may not be possible to visit it in October.

If you go by car, there is a parking lot near the entrance of the museum where you can leave your car and not worry about a parking space.

Whether in winter or summer, you will be impressed by the open-air museum and will recommend it to everyone as a mandatory visit if you find yourself in the Arkhangelsk region.

Opening hours of the Malye Korely Museum

Before going to the museum, go to the official website and read the necessary information not only about the museum’s opening hours, but also about when the events of interest will take place.

But for everyone, the museum is open every day. It is worth noting that only visiting times vary depending on the season. So, from June to September, the museum can be visited from 10.00 to 20.00, and from October to May the museum is open from 10.00 to 18.00.

Ticket price

The Arkhangelsk Museum of Wooden Architecture "Malye Korely" hosts many different events, which you can find out about by going to the official website or by calling. Accordingly, their prices may vary.

On sightseeing tours sets its own fixed price. So, for example, to explore a village with a tour where there are more than 6 people, you need to pay 150 rubles for adults; for pensioners, students and schoolchildren the ticket price will be 100 rubles. The price will be different if there is a group of less than 5 people, and an individual tour is also possible.

The cost of a ticket for visiting the temple complex in the village of Nenoksa or visiting the “House of Commercial Assembly” or “Kunitsina’s Estate” will be 150 rubles for adults and 100 rubles for preferential category. For each visit you need to buy a separate ticket, or you can purchase single ticket, the cost of which will be 500 rubles.

Museum address and how to get there

The Malye Korely Museum, as mentioned above, is located in the Arkhangelsk region, in the Primorsky district, in the village of Malye Korely, 25 km from Arkhangelsk.

You can get to it either by personal car or by public transport, or rather by bus No. 104, which departs from Arkhangelsk, from the railway station. There is also another bus from the bus station, number 108.

Museum "Malye Korely": latest reviews

You can read many reviews on the Internet about how people visited this museum and were very pleased. Some come from Arkhangelsk or neighboring cities and villages, some come from afar, but all visitors appreciate high level service, good guides who tell a lot of interesting things, and also note that not only adults are interested in visiting this place, but also children are delighted with the museum.

On this page:

Even those who have little idea of ​​the location of the Russian North know about Malye Korely in Russia. This is truly the main local attraction. If you haven’t been to Korely, you haven’t been to Arkhangelsk!

The territories that are part of the current Arkhangelsk and Vologda regions have always been the center of wooden architecture traditions in Russia. But the reality is that more and more villages in the local dense forests are losing their last inhabitants, and wooden monuments deteriorate, become decrepit and remain unattended. The most interesting of them, which have so far been lucky enough not to burn or rot, are dismantled and transported to Malye Korely.

Of course, through such transportation, temples and huts are “torn from their roots” and become dull museum exhibits. After all, the lion’s share of their beauty and charm is not the building itself, but its surroundings, the way it fits into the landscape. Move the same temples or to a museum and they will lose all their extraordinary charm.

But the choice facing most of the Korelian exhibits was simple: either complete destruction or a museum. So thanks for that.

Malye Korely Museum

The entire exhibition of the museum is divided into three parts: Kargopol-Onega, Dvina, Pinega and Mezen. These regions of the Russian North were distinguished by traditions and way of life, and accordingly, the architecture in them was different.

Let's start with the Kargopol-Onega sector, as it is the most familiar to us from our current and past trips. The weather had been going downhill since Onega and towards Korely it turned into a real northern autumn with freezing rain and clouds touching the ground. But what can we do, we had one single day allotted for Korely.

Kargopol-Onega sector

At the entrance we are greeted by a traditional Russian hedge made of slanting branches, and behind it a museum employee mows with a lawn mower nothing other than flax - one of the main northern agricultural crops.

On the edge of the hill stands a massive tower with a dome absurdly plastered right on top of the tent. This is one of the oldest surviving wooden bell towers in Russia, built in the 16th century. The “ancestors” of such archaic bell towers were wooden watchtowers of forts and fortresses.

This bell tower was transported from a village with the wonderful name Kuliga-Drakovanovo: just a moment the head of the Serpent Gorynych will appear from behind the ancient logs.

Let's move on. Hidden in the grove is a traditional northern chapel with a gallery. In a non-museum state, such chapels usually stand without any galleries or bells and look like a simple log house in open field. There are still many of them throughout the Russian North.

Next to the chapel in a clearing there is a hut of a simple Kargopol peasant Poluyanov from the village of Gar. Kargopol Sushi has always been the poorest part of the Russian North; peasants here barely made ends meet.

Residential here is only the front log house for one room, and the whole rear end At home there is a covered utility yard. To preserve heat, livestock and farm yards in the north are attached directly to the residential hut so that the passage between them is under the roof. The harsher the climate, the larger the yard: livestock live there, hay is stored, and all household work is done.

There is a wooden pipe sticking out of the roof of the hut, because it is not a pipe at all, but a kind of ventilation. This hut was a smoke hut, that is, it was heated in a black way, without a chimney.

To prevent smoke from spreading throughout the hut, special shelves were made at the level of human height. The photo clearly shows that the walls above them are smoked, and below them they are clean.

Poluyanov was quite poor, so his utensils were not sophisticated.

The center of the Kargopol-Onega exposition is the cube-shaped Church of the Ascension of the Lord from 1669 from the seaside village of Kushereka. Once upon a time, Kushereka lived on salmon, navaga, and whitefish; at the beginning of the 20th century, it had almost 2,000 inhabitants. By 2010, there were 7 of them left.

One of the museum's curators is standing on the porch of the church. These guardians not only sit in every hut and temple, but also happily talk about the history of the museum and the “sponsored” exhibit. Very cool!

Next to the temple is the massive house of Pukhov from the village of Bolshoy Khaluy, in Oshevensk. This is the house of a wealthy peasant, consisting of two log buildings.

But that's not all: behind the house there is an equally impressive courtyard. Pukhov had a large farm, a lot of livestock, so he needed an appropriate yard.

Pukhov was an Old Believer, like many of his fellow villagers who fled to the north after the split. The house has a separate chapel room.

Dvinsk sector

We cross the bridge across the ravine from the Kargopol part to the Dvinsk part. Here there are buildings brought from the villages of the Northern Dvina and Vologda region.

In the center is the St. George Church of 1672 from Solvychegodsk district. At the heart of the temple is the same archaic octagonal frame, but the light gallery surrounding it changes the whole picture. In general, many tented churches were there before with such galleries, but almost all of them were removed during the last restorations of the 19th century, when the fashion for stone churches forced the villagers to sheathe their churches with planks and whitewash them.

A very beautiful temple.

Behind the church begins the Dvina village. The architecture here is completely different: the huts become two-story “six-walled” buildings, summer lights climb under the roof and acquire flirtatious balconies, and the porches leading directly to the second floor stand on massive “legs.” At the same time, courtyard houses are becoming larger and larger.

On the left, in the far half, there is a summer hut, on the right, with small windows, there is a winter hut. In winter, even the owners of such large houses lived with their whole family in one room.

A very interesting building in the Dvina part is the house of the peasant merchant Tropin. This is a huge two-story domina, where Tropin lived with his family and household, and on the ground floor he kept a tavern. The house was heated by a heating system consisting of a Russian stove and Dutch stoves.

Just a huge house - the width makes everything smaller, but in fact it is the size of half a five-story building.

Nearby there is a much smaller house - the house-yard of Shestakov from the village of Tsivozero. It is interesting due to its platband ancient form above the window. It's called "ochelye".

We move along the forest path to the Pinega sector. Here are buildings from villages on the Pinega River.

Pinega sector

We are greeted by a line of grain barns. In Rus', barns were built at a distance from houses and the entire village, so that in the event of a fire, the most important wealth - the seed grain - would not be burned.

Barns were placed on legs to protect grain from dampness and all kinds of mice. It seems to me that this is where the “hut on chicken legs” came from.

The huts of the Pinega sector are all closed and somehow abandoned. We walk past barns and mowing huts: if the peasants' mowing fields were far from the village, then they built separate housing there and moved there for the entire time of mowing.

In the North, everything is wooden, even a well bucket:

Mezen sector

On the very cliff of the ravine, as if on the seashore, there are huge house-ships of the Mezen part. These are the largest and most prosperous farms in the Russian North. Once upon a time, the Pomors who lived in them were engaged in fishing, prey of sea animals and were the richest northerners.

As you can see in the photo below, the Mezen courtyards were even larger than the already rather large houses. This was explained by the harsh climate and the fact that in winter Pomeranian boats - karbass - were built in these yards.

Karbas is not just any boat, but a full-fledged sailing ship, on which Pomors went far out to sea.

Wealthy Mezen residents decorated their houses whenever possible: we have already seen the same painting on the slopes on still residential buildings in the village.

It starts to rain again - we go back.

At the exit of the museum there is a “collection” of windmills. There are no longer any of them left in “wild nature” and therefore they look somehow fake.

We have one more destination planned for today - the oldest remaining tented temple in Russia.

St. Nicholas Church in the village of Lyavlya

The village of Lyavlya on the river of the same name is located just a couple of minutes drive from Malye Korel. Here, on the high Lyavlensky Hill, as usual, a wooden tented temple, built back in 1581, stands picturesquely.

It is of the same archaic “tower” form that underlies all tented churches. Just an octagonal tower, topped with a tent - “an octagon from the bottom.”

IN mid-19th century, the temple fell into disrepair, so that services were no longer held there. But an amazing incident helped here: the wife of the Arkhangelsk military governor, the Marquis de Traverse, had a vision that her sick son would recover if the governor restored the Lyavlena temple.

The governor restored the temple, but the work was done, to say the least, rather poorly. The rotted lower crowns, along with the gallery that surrounded the temple, were simply thrown out, and the temple lost almost a third of its original 40-meter height. That's why he looks so disproportionately overweight now. And it was, you have to understand, very similar to the piercingly beautiful temple in Piyala.

Now the church is closed to visitors, but we were lucky: some caretaker just came and let us in: the inside is completely empty (nothing from the temple’s decoration has survived), only the original 16th-century dome, removed during restoration, stands.

It can be seen that to facilitate the construction, the dome was cut through one log. The tent was also cut.

The place on Lyavoensky Hill is magical - once here, on high bank Northern Dvina was a large monastery.

And now the pipes of Novodvinsk are just smoking on the other side and the men are setting up salmon nets on the river.

With this, I ask you to consider our current journey through the North over; the next day we were waiting for the M8 highway to Moscow, which surprised us with its unknown quality.

All previous episodes of our northern journey, as well as a detailed route, can be found here.

Photo: Museum of Wooden Architecture "Malye Korely"

Photo and description

The Malye Korely Museum of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art is 25 km away. from Arkhangelsk, on the picturesque bank of the Northern Dvina near the village of Malye Korely, it has been open to visitors since 1973. This is the first open-air museum in Russia, the formation of which was carried out on the basis of preliminary architectural, historical and ethnographic research that scientifically substantiated the selection of monuments and their placement.

On an area of ​​140 hectares there are more than 100 religious, residential and commercial buildings of the 17th-20th centuries. The exhibition is built on the principle of sectors, which are models of the most typical settlements for the Russian North with their characteristic layout and a full range of residential and utility buildings. Each sector is solved as a fragment of a village, where not only individual buildings are important, but also their mutual relationship with each other. The museum concept plans to create six sectors, each of which should reflect a certain type of peasant settlements characteristic of the basins of the largest rivers in the Arkhangelsk region:

Windmills give the museum a distinctive and unique appearance. The pride of the museum is the collection of bells and the extraordinary exhibition “Northern Bells”. In 1975, the museum was the first to revive this ancient art. During folklore holidays, when age-old songs and tales are heard, when the museum is colored with the bright colors of ancient costumes, traditional northern bells can be heard far away, echoing the cheerful ringing of bells under the arch of horses.

More than 100 thousand people visit the museum every year; the annual festive cycle of folk rituals has been revived here, and folklore festivals are held. Visitors can take part in games and amusements, have a fun ride in a sleigh drawn by trotters, and taste shaneg and pancakes with hot tea. And all this in the background unique monuments folk architecture and beautiful northern nature.