The Roerich family left a great cultural and spiritual heritage, concentrated in the Lopukhins' Moscow estate. The International Roerich Museum in Moscow has settled in the mansion since 1993. The core of the exhibition is the works of Nicholas and Helena Roerich, who created a unique philosophical concept of understanding the world.
Family History
The Museum has ten rooms. Each has its own name. The exposition dedicated to the activities of the Roerich family is located on the second floor. Conceptually, the Roerich Museum is a public organization designed to bring spiritual knowledge to the masses.
On the first floor, in the introductory hall, there are symbolic paintings in golden and black colors by N. Volkova. Through artistic images, visitors are invited to look into the past of mankind and unravel its future, predicted by N. Roerich. In the rhythm of the human heart, immersing visitors in the atmosphere of the museum, the crystal flashes and goes out, filling the room with the flickering of faces. Humanity is the thread that binds the pictures together. She leads the visitor through the pages of spiritual history, telling about the great Teachers of the past, depicted on the first five canvases, and leads to a man of a wonderful future - to a new era, inwhich people become likeness of the Creator of the Universe.
The next hall is Petersburg. N. Roerich and E. Roerich were born in St. Petersburg, where they met and got married. Children's photos of the future married couple are presented in the showcases of the hall. Early gymnasium canvases by N. Roerich adorn the walls, testifying to the first stages of the development of the artist's talent. In St. Petersburg, a love for archeology, history, understanding of his mission was born in him, and the spiritual power of the philosopher woke up. Archival photographs of the sons are also exhibited here: Svyatoslav and Yuri. Books and personal belongings of the family are also presented for review.
First Expedition
Russian Hall
The exhibits presented here unite pagan Russia and Christian Russia into a single whole. The Roerich Museum keeps within its walls many artifacts from the first Russian expedition of the famous couple. Numerous photographs taken during the pilgrimage of the young Roerich family to the ancient cities of Russia testify to their love and interest in the history of the Motherland. The archaeological research carried out strengthened Nicholas Roerich in reverence for the land and the past of his country.
Traveling through Holy Russia, the artist and thinker found confirmation of his idea about the unity of the civilizations of Russia and the East. From his trips, he brought rarities found in the land, confirming the theory of unity, paintings, sketches, diaries filled with admiration for the people and the ancient history of his native land. The Russian Hall contains objects of ancient Russian art,canvases of the artist, photographs of that period.
Philosophy
The following halls of the Roerich Museum are devoted to the knowledge of the world, philosophical concepts, numerous expeditions.
Hall of Living Ethics
Here are works of art by N. Roerich, which serve as illustrations for the doctrine of "Agni Yoga", which his wife, E. Roerich, wrote in the thirties of the twentieth century. You can also see the first editions of Agni Yoga, portraits of Helena Roerich, a conceptual exhibition of busts of outstanding thinkers of mankind. Filled with deep blue color, the hall plunges tourists into the mysterious world of high matters and secret knowledge. Majestic sculptures, embodying the Masculine and Feminine principles, help tourists to get closer to the origins of knowledge.
Teachers' Hall
The rarities of this hall are the center of the Roerich Museum, a holy place for employees and visitors. Here are exhibits that testify to the deep love for the Mahatmas of mankind. Teaching and apprenticeship are milestones in the path of the Roerich family. Their reverent attitude to the Living Ethics of relationships with the previous generations of Teachers is reflected in the paintings placed in the hall. The showcases contain items donated to Helena Roerich by the Teacher - books, art objects, commemorative signs. There is also a letter written by the Teacher on birch bark and addressed to Elena.
Scientific activity
Central Asian Expedition Hall
On the map presented in the hall, you can trace the route of the legendary expedition of the Roerichs toEast. During the journey, N. Roerich became convinced of the existence of a single center, a source of knowledge, which laid the foundation for the cultural community of Russia, India, and Tibet. Documents in the showcases of the hall tell about the stages of the expedition, diaries of the reflections of the participants in the campaign. The unique footage of the photo chronicle tells about the difficulties of the path, achievements, and impressions. The paintings painted by Nicholas Roerich during this period are distinguished by their special spirituality, insights, and piercing clarity of colors. Some of the paintings are placed in the walls of the hall.
Kulu Hall
Here you can be transported to the Kullu Valley, where Nicholas Roerich and his family lived for twenty years. In the valley he founded a unique Himalayan Research Institute called "Urusvati". Nicholas Roerich was the leading specialist of the institute, devoting his time to the study of human psychic energy, the possibilities of spiritual development, and the power of thought. The winter months were devoted to research, and archaeological expeditions were organized in the summer.
Evidence of hard work, scientific achievements are stored in the Kullu Hall. The luminaries of world science, such as Einstein and Vavilov, were involved in the research work. The stands of the hall introduce the stages of the Institute's development, routes of expeditions, finds. The Roerich Museum provides extensive materials on the Indian period of the life of thinkers.
Social and cultural activities
Hall of the Banner of Peace
Nikolai Konstantinovich Roerich was a conductor and defender of the cultural heritage of Russia. He opposed destructionhistorical monuments and preached the unity of earthly civilization. In the center of the hall, a model of the globe rotates, personifying a common home for all peoples, and the banner of peace with three sacred spheres of trinity acts as a unifying symbol.
The Banner of Peace is N. Roerich's dream of the unity of all people, of life without wars and destruction, the desire for a single spiritual growth of all earthlings. Before the Second World War, in 1931, Nikolai Grigorievich created the famous Roerich Pact, calling for the preservation of cultural heritage and which became the basis for the creation of the League of Culture, which established the Day of Culture. Documents of that time are placed on the stands of the hall, they are proudly kept by the Roerich Museum. Photos, diary entries, transcripts of meetings testify to vigorous activity in this direction.
Successors of the Roerichs' cause
The two remaining halls are dedicated to the life and work of Yuri Roerich, the eldest son, and Svyatoslav Roerich, the youngest son, who became the founder of the Roerich Public Center in Moscow.
Yuri Roerich - orientalist, linguist, artist, archaeologist. He devoted his life to studying the finds and heritage of Nicholas Roerich, painted pictures.
Svyatoslav Roerich - artist, public figure. His paintings are filled with a deep sacred meaning, which is not immediately revealed. His worship of beauty is reflected in every stroke of the brush, in every gesture of his characters.
Roerich Museum: how to get there
A tour of the halls is best done with a guide, which is famous for the Roerich Museum. Opening hours of the cultural center: from 11:00 to 19:00,day off - Monday.
Seminars, meetings with scientists, lectures are held within the walls of the public organization of the Roerichs. The schedule of events can be found on the museum's website. The Roerich Museum itself in Moscow is located at: Maly Znamensky lane, 3/5 (metro station "Kropotkinskaya").
