Russia

That’s what it’s like, the main city of Siberia

It is a beautiful and exceptional monument of nature in the south of the Tyumen region. A walking excursion will make you familiar with rare wildlife species listed in the Red Book of the Tyumen region. You can climb a path high as a 25-storey building. You will have all the beauty of the Tyumen region spread before the eyes. But you don’t have to exhaust yourself climbing to see the beauty of the region. An archeological museum-reserve is situated 25 km of Tyumen, on a picturesque bank of Andreevskoe Lake. First archeological excavations took place there in 1883. Numerous expeditions, which worked later in the region, discovered traces of ancient dwelling sites, parts of ancient fortresses, sanctuary places and tombs. The earliest excavation is dated back to the Stony Age about 5000 years B.C.

There are several defensive fortifications of the Iron Age in the territory of the museum-reserve.  Ancient Mansi sanctuary of the 9th-13th centuries was discovered in those places. Lifestyle of the Khanty and Mansi people is represented by reconstructed houses of their time. Visiting the exhibition you will form a clear picture of peculiar cultural life of the northern people. You will clue a secret of harmony of living in severe climate and wild nature. If you are not interested in nature, there are a lot of attractions in Tyumen that attract even a most exacting tourist. Tyumen regional museum, for instance.

Tyumen regional museum, established in 1879, is one of the oldest in Siberia.  Ivan Yakovlevich Slovtsov, an outstanding academic and educator, member of Russian geographical society, conducted its foundation. The main collection of the museum is based on two private collections of Siberian ancient things. One of them was gathered by Solovtsov, another was granted by Nikolai Chukmaldin, Tyumen famous merchant and patron of arts. At first the museum was located in a building of Alexandrovsky academy and Slovtsov was the head of it that time. The museum occupied a building of a former regional administration since 1922. Nowadays, the museum is one of the most important cultural centres of the region which performs exhibitions, conducts research and education work.

Municipal Duma building, built in the 30s of the 19^th century, is among the brightest and original monuments of architecture that create an image of Tyumen historical centre. The building is decorated with a tower clock, which were performed by A. Trusov, a peasant of the Uspenskaya district in 1857. A permanent exposition “Museum and nature” is located on the second floor. The exposition is represented by paleontological showpieces, wildlife of the region. A skeleton of a mammoth is, no doubt, the most striking showpiece. Skeletons of bison and wooly rhinoceros discovered in the region at the end of the 19^th century are of great interest.

Besides the paleontological showpieces, a big zoological collection, including stuffed birds and animals, is demonstrated in the museum. There are such rare birds as pink flamingo, duck hawk, red-breasted goose and other among them. A collection of more than 10 thousand insects and the most ancient showpieces of the tertiary period are very interesting as well. “Masharov house” is another interesting museum situated in a stony mansion, a monument of architecture of the late 19^th century. This house with outbuildings forms a small grange in the centre of Tyumen and was owned by Nikolai Masharov (1865-1922), a famous manufacturer in Tyumen.

“Masharov house” museum was open in the year 1994. The interior of the late 19^th-early 20^th centuries was fully restored in the mansion: a hall, a cabinet, a dining-room, a sleeping-room, a children’s room and the back regions of the house. Decoration of a stove and a fire-place attracts attention, planning and decoration of small but cozy rooms. A various kinds of cast-iron ware that were produced in Masharov’s plant are represented in the museum. Visiting the museum you feel like going back to that time; as if you enter not the museum but a time machine.

Nowadays, there are held also photo-exhibitions of Ancient Tyumen and its citizens. Music and poetic evenings take place in the living-room of the house regularly.

If you are bored visiting museums, have a walk a through the city. There are a lot of ancient cathedrals in Tyumen. Famous architects had hearts in the creation of the cathedral what you will no doubt feel when enter any.

A famous cathedral church is one of the main architectural and cultural symbols of Tyumen. It is a bright sample of “Siberian baroque”. The first wooden church of the Sign was erected in 1624. It was burnt not once – 1697 and 1766. And a stony church was laid in 1768. Unfortunately, its architect is unknown. The church was built in 1786. An iconostasis of the church was created by F. Cherepanov, a coachman from Tobolsk, in 1801. Nowadays, it is hard to imagine that its architectural ensemble was built during a century a half.

Exaltation of the Cross church, also known as St. Nicholas church, was laid in the southern region of Zatyumensky promontory on the funds of the church people in 1774 and consecrated in 1791. The church was erected with a richly decorated five cupolas. A beautiful decoration was lost during the basic repair of the 19^th century. When the church was closed, the crosses were thrown down from the cupolas and it was used as a warehouse, a school, a student’s club and so on. Services were revived in 1993 when the church was given to Tobolsk and Tyumen eparchy. The building was restored and fenced by cast-iron hedge. The church was consecrated in the August of 1998.

All Hallows church construction began in the territory of a graveyard in 1833 and it was consecrated in 1838. There was a wooden same-name church at first, built in 1779. The place was an eastern edge of the city that time. All Hallows church is the only round church in Siberia.

Church of three hallows stands in the territory of Parfyonovskoe graveyard. There was a wooden church in 1586 but it became shabby by the middle of the last century. Dyakonovy brothers have a stony church erected in the names of St. Basil the Great, St. John Chrysostom and St. George Theologian in 1862. The church was erected in 1932. Services were revived by a new prior Sergius in 1990.

Of course we can’t tell you about all the beauties of the city in one article. But there is one more thing to mention. Siberian people have always been famous as hospitable, generous and open-hearted. It is the citizens that the city is proud of. Visiting Tyumen you will feel refreshment of mind and body. We will keep on telling you about Siberia and its cities in our further articles.