Central Bank Building

Site Background

In 1728, Major General Artemy Volynsky began to buy empty lots near the Kuznetsk bridge from the princes Shakhovsky and Lvov . In 1731, the new owner began the construction of the estate according to the project of architect Peter Eropkin . The estate was located on two sides of the Neglinnaya River , which flowed through the estate park. The main building of the estate was located far from the red line of Rozhdestvenka Street, behind it was a garden with ponds , arbors and fountains ^{[4] [5] [6]} .

In 1759, the land passed into the ownership of the husband of the daughter of Volyn Ivan Vorontsov . The new owner expanded the territory and set up a French park on the slopes. In 1778, the old mansion was reconstructed according to the project of architect Matvey Kazakov . In the 1780s, the city authorities equipped Neglinnaya embankment by tearing off the coastal territory of the estate ^{[5] [7]} . After the death of Vorontsov, the estate was divided between the heirs, and in 1793 the landowner Irina Ivanovna Beketova acquired the southern part of the territory along Kuznetsky Most Street . By 1809, the northern section was purchased at the expense of the treasury and transferred to the department of the Imperial Medical and Surgical Academy . Classes are located in the former chambers of Vorontsov, and in the park behind the house there is a pharmacy garden ^{[4] [8]} .

Since 1844, the territory was occupied by clinics of Moscow University , but already in 1873 a proposal was made to the city ​​duma to transfer hospitals to a new place. The complex was surrounded by urban buildings, which prevented the construction of additional utility rooms. In addition, the institutions were located far from other possessions of the medical faculty , which were located in the vicinity of Mokhovaya Street and Petrovka ^[9] . In the 1880s, Varvara Morozova donated a portion of the estate to the university near Bolshaya Pirogovskaya Street, which marked the beginning of the creation of a unified clinical base for the university ^{[10] [11] [4]} .

Bank Construction

In 1888, part of the former estate of Vorontsov passed into the free property of the Moscow office of the State Bank. Two years later, the solemn laying of the main administrative building took place. Its construction was carried out according to the project of Konstantin Bykovsky under the direct control of bank managers Alexei Tsimsen and Julia Zhukovsky . For this, a special commission was created, the representative of which was the head of the branch I. I. Bilibin. The new building had two floors and was located away from the red line of the street. This arrangement ensured the safety of the bank's underground premises, despite the clay coastal soils . To strengthen the foundation , 4,675 piles were driven into the ground; some of them reached 8.5 meters ^{[12] [13] [1]} .

The plan of the house resembled a cross , where a small crossbar was highlighted from the side of the street with increased risalit . In this part of the building there was a hall and a main staircase, on either side of them there were premises for bank employees and visitors. The room, located above the lobby and overlooking Neglinnaya, was occupied by an oval Meeting Room of the Office Board ^[14] . One of its walls was decorated with an alcove with a portrait of the acting emperor , and on the opposite side a passage was arranged to the office of the office manager. Spacious halls were located in the middle of the side wings of the house, which through massive arches connected with the offices of bank employees facing the street and the courtyard. The central naves , crowned with cruciform arches , had a greater height than the side rooms. The architect Ivan Mashkov noticed in this device similarities with medieval basilic sections ^{[11] [1]} .

In April 1894, the complex was opened to visitors, and in May of that year, a solemn consecration of the building took place. The event was attended by Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich with his wife Elizabeth Fedorovna . According to some reports, it was thanks to this project that Bykovsky received the title of professor of architecture. His creation was the first mansion in Moscow, built specifically for the bank, as well as one of the few, the entrances to which were asphalted. In the main building there were: cash accounts of current accounts and transfers , loan , stock and accounting departments, bill of exchange , savings , change and credit cash desks, as well as accounting departments. The walls of the mansion were equipped with two main cash vaults. The pantry of the exchange office was on the second floor. Its windows were protected by gratings, the vaults of the room were reinforced with metal rails , and the roof covering over the entire middle part of the structure was made of iron. The depository storage depot occupied two floors of the side building on the courtyard side and was equipped with tiers with iron cabinets. The offices of officials were equipped with internal telephones , electric calls were installed to call the courier. In addition, a telegraph and a post office operated in the building ^{[15] [1] [16]} .

Two three-story buildings were erected on the territory, in which the apartments of officials were equipped. The first tiers of the buildings housed rooms for subordinates, the second and third occupied the apartments of senior controllers, executor, cashier and manager. For the heating of the premises, 11 Dutch stoves were installed, in the basements there were house laundries and carpentry workshops. A third of the employees lived on Neglinnaya, the rest - in the Lunin House near Nikitsky Boulevard ^{[17] [2]} .

In 1895-1896, the building of the Mortgage Treasury was erected on the northern border of the site according to the project of Bykovsky ^[4] . The butt of the building was facing Neglinnaya Street, it was decorated with a high portal , similar in decor to the main building. The facade was decorated with two pylons , inside of which there was a portico in the antas of composite columns framing the entrance to the room ^[2] .

Building

In connection with the monetary reform of Sergei Witte and the increase in the functions of the State Bank of the Russian Empire, it was decided to expand the building of the Moscow office. In 1908, under the leadership of architect Illarion Ivanov-Shits, the main building was supplemented with two symmetrical buildings on the sides of the risalit of the rear facade. They arranged square halls, each of which was illuminated by a lantern. New premises were occupied by the stock division and the separation of deposits for storage ^{[15] [2]} .

After the October Revolution, the complex on Neglinnaya Street was transferred to the People’s Bank. In 1922, the State Bank of the USSR was created on its basis. The buildings could not accommodate all the units of the office, so in 1927-1929 they were reconstructed. The project manager was the architect Ivan Zholtovsky, who was assisted by G.P. Goltz , S.N. Kozhin and M.P. Parusnikov . It is known that the project of Alexei Shchusev was also considered, but preference was given to the idea of ​​Zholtovsky ^{[15] [2] [3]} .

As conceived by the architect, the mansion was supplemented with two six-story buildings. To do this, dismantled the building of the Loan treasury, as well as part of residential buildings. The foundation of the structures is located close to the collector of the Neglinnaya River, so the structure was reinforced with piles, solid slabs and lowering wells. The work platform was equipped with technical elevators and trolleys for quick movement of materials. Initially, Zholtovsky’s project implied a superstructure of the main building with additional floors, but later this idea was abandoned. Part of the north wing was given over to the printing house , the remaining space was reserved for operating rooms. In the southern annex there were government offices and a meeting room. In addition, the former residential buildings were combined, and the offices formed as a result of the outbuilding were occupied by offices of office workers. In the 1950s, a whole courtyard complex was completed on the fourth floor ^{[17] [2]} .

By 1970, a two-story utility building was erected along the eastern border of the territory. He was occupied by garages and storage rooms. In the mid-1980s, reconstruction of the southern and central parts of the former residential buildings took place ^[17] . In 1991, the State Bank issued 5 rubles with a picture of a house on Neglinnaya Street ^[18] .

Modernity

In 1997, by order of the bank’s board, a study of the state of structures was carried out, according to which a large-scale reconstruction of the architectural ensemble took place in 2000-2002. The builders strengthened the supporting structures of the main building, replaced the wooden floors and the roof , repaired the communications and restored the elements of the external decoration ^[17] . Two years after the completion of the work, the complex was recognized as an object of cultural heritage with the assignment of the status of a monument of regional significance ^[19] .

In 2017, information appeared about a possible partial relocation of bank employees to the Moscow City area . Later it became known that such an option was not considered, but it was planned to optimize the placement of personnel ^[20] .

The facades of the Moscow office of the State Bank are made in the Renaissance style and richly decorated with stucco . The lower floor is decorated with large diamond rust and serves as a stylobate for the upper tier. The central risalit from the side of the street is decorated with three arched windows of the Office Boardroom. Above each of them are placed masks of the god of commerce - Hermes - as well as figures that embody the prosperity of trade , industry and finance . They are separated by columns of a composite order. It is known that the sculptures were created according to the sketches of academician Alexander Opekushin . The building is crowned by a cornice with an attic , where the name of the institution is located. The almost square windows of the side wings are also separated by adjoining Corinthian columns, which serve as a support for the extended architrave ^{[21] [22]} . The stucco decoration elements were made by V. L. Gladkov. Bykovsky carefully checked the quality of each part and repeatedly sent them for revision. As a result, the work lagged behind the schedule by three months ^{[23] [16]} . Contemporaries enthusiastically spoke about the creation of the architect, but later some researchers believed that the facade of the building is oversaturated with decor ^[24] .

The main entrance to the building is located in the risalit of the central facade and leads to the spacious lobby, from which a wide staircase rises to the hall. On the opposite side of the hall there is a direct passage to the main staircase. The pupil of Bykovsky, architect Ivan Mashkov, described this room this way:

From the large lobby, three arches offer views of the main staircase, illuminated through a glass colored ceiling. The staircase is placed in five marches, which turn on two sides into the open gallery of the second floor, connecting two halls for banking operations, occupying two side wings ^[16] .

Despite numerous restructures, the layout of the building has not changed much, some elements of decoration, made according to Bykovsky's sketches , have also been preserved. Among them: a colored stained - glass window of a lantern, a balustrade of a front staircase, gallery fences made in the form of griffins ^[25] . Part of the second floor is occupied by an exhibition with portraits of bank managers ^[14] . During the reconstruction of the ensemble according to the Zholtovsky project, an old thermometer was placed on the wall of the southern building ^[10] .

The idea of ​​organizing a museum of the Central Bank arose in 1902, at that time it was supposed to create it in St. Petersburg , but after the First Russian Revolution the question was postponed. They returned to the idea only in 1971 in connection with the 50th anniversary of the State Bank of the USSR. At this time, an exhibition of commemorative photographs, as well as gifts presented in honor of the anniversary of the organization, were arranged in the building on Neglinnaya. Later, the exposition was transformed into the “Museum of Labor and Military Glory of Bank Employees”, led by economist Lev Zakharovich Dobkin. Within the walls of the institution, archival photographs, models of objects built on credit funds, counting devices, and more were exhibited. In 1999, to the 140th anniversary of the organization, on the basis of the complex, an exposition devoted to the history of the bank was formed ^[15] .

In 2015, during the open days, the first excursions to the Museum of the Central Bank took place for everyone. The exhibition tells about the history of the national currency, among the exhibits there are: old cash registers and printing presses , the heaviest minted coin in Russia with a face value of 50 thousand rubles, fake banknotes of 1812 , gold and platinum bullions , a collection of securities of the 18th - 20th centuries , banknotes of the times Civil War and more ^{[14] [26] [27]} .

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