Today the Brusnitsyn mansion needs serious restoration. This is an architectural monument of federal significance, which is being destroyed due to the neglect of the authorities. There are buildings of factories around, between which its facade fades.
Characteristic
The mansion of the Brusnitsyn merchants is a place about which legends bordering on mysticism roam. The local interiors amaze with their beauty. However, the building is on the verge of destruction due to abandonment. They can't find money for restoration work, tenants often change.
Photo shoots for advertisements, filming of films and clips are held here, which also does not affect the atmosphere in the most favorable way. You can come here as part of an excursion group. It is forbidden to touch the interior elements because of their fragility. Fortunately, the rich decoration is largely intact. Heating and electricity work in some places.
Excursion to the Brusnitsyn mansion is a great way to look at the artistic decoration of local premises. If the building is so beautiful now, it's hard to imagine how it was in its heyday. It is as if you are moving into the past to become its direct part, you find yourself in thatera. In view of the dilapidation of the house, you need to seize the opportunity to look at this splendor, because who knows how much longer everything will remain in the same condition.
Historical data
The Brusnitsyn Mansion was built in 1770 at the junction of the Kozhevennaya and Oblique lines. It was a building made of stone, the facade of which looked out over the coast. In 1780, Catherine II issued a decree, according to which factories for leather processing were built here. In 1787, the building changed significantly due to the fact that a factory office was placed here. There were also residential-type rooms.
In 1844 this building was bought by N. M. Brusnitsyn. Three years later, the plant began to work. In 1857, the old house was supplemented with an extension on the west side. In the 1860s, the openings of the windows on the first floor were widened. Completed the finishing of the facades on the front. In 1864, new elements of the architectural composition were built in the west.
In 1868, both spouses had ownership of the Brusnitsyn mansion. In 1882, he passes to their heirs. The three brothers began rebuilding the facility two years later. AI Kovsharov embodied his architectural ideas. The second floor was increased, an extension was built, where a staircase for the main entrance was placed. There is also a beautiful greenhouse. The interior of the house has changed radically, but this has only made it better.
Location
The Brusnitsyn's mansion, whose address is Kozhevennaya line, house 27, looks like the letter "Sh", if you look at the plan. This form is due to the presence of its own wing for each of the brothers.
Architects characterize the style of this house as eclectic. Kovsharov worked here from 1884 to 1886. The fact that this chic building is located in a zone where basically all processes are aimed at the development of industry seems strange to many. There was an unpleasant smell and even poisonous fumes, which for some reason did not bother the merchants. Or they thought it was more important to control the plant.
View from the street
The Brusnitsyn Mansion (St. Petersburg) is externally decorated with a frieze, on which there are picturesque garlands. If you look above, you can see how much the cornice protrudes, on which the denticles are placed. There is a pediment above the stairs.
The facade on the right is decorated with bay windows in the shape of a semicircle. Entering the courtyard, you will see a place where a chic garden used to grow, trees, sheds and outbuildings now remain from it. Once the whole complex was a beautiful estate, where there was a mansion and vegetable gardens, buildings for production and storage purposes.
A truly impressive sight was the Brusnitsyn mansion. Photos with his past appearance are still preserved, so there is still a small chance to see this with your own eyes.
Influence of Soviet power
The main entrance was boarded up after the 1917 revolution. The monograms with the family badge of the former owners were removed. A hammer and a sickle, the symbols of the communists, were placed in the vacated place. In addition to the facade, this symbol can also be seen on the chandelier in the dance hall.
Ownership ofthe Brusnitsyn mansion passed to A. Radishchev, the owner of another leather processing plant. The management and laboratory workers met here. Most recently, they removed the tables on which skin tests were performed using special devices.
In the 1920s, the local greenhouse was moved to the building of the Botanical Garden. In the period from 1925 to 1930, where there had previously been a passage, a checkpoint with a vestibule was located. Wooden floors appeared in the main staircase, part of the doors were laid. In 1993, a metal cover was installed over the greenhouse. The White Hall and dining room have also been renovated.
Recently there was an idea, in accordance with it, the factory buildings, with which the Brusnitsyn mansion (St. Petersburg) adjoins, were planned to be reconstructed in such a way that a hotel could be located on this territory. It will offer a view of the sea coast. However, the money required for this operation is too much, and very few investors will agree to build something in an industrial remote area.
Losses
In the center of the building there were ceremonial-type rooms, in other parts there were living rooms of the owners and their relatives. The main entrance is in the east. Coming here, you can get acquainted with the enfilade layout. Many interesting and impressive details have survived here.
During the Soviet era, workshops were organized in the rooms, so some elements of luxury still disappeared. The paint is cracked, the stucco is peeled off in some places, and the walls are shabby. Of course, it is sad to see that the mansion of the Brusnitsyn brothers is living out its days. A large number of sculptures and chests of drawers, carpets, crystal dishes and other luxury items have been lost. However, you can still look at the chandeliers and fireplaces.
Elegance and sophistication
After going through the hallway, you can get into the premises of the second floor, one of which is the merchant's front dining room, whose decoration style is most reminiscent of the late Renaissance.
The value of the estate's chambers is that there is genuine decoration, for example, a ceiling decorated with stucco. It was painted to look like wood to better match the paneling on the walls and the door. You can see a beautiful huge bronze chandelier and wall sconces. They were installed by the founders, subsequently using candles. The sideboard made of carved wood deserves special attention. Each panel on the walls was made by hand. Behind one of them, a secret door was created, through which one could get into the billiards room.
The doors have a ram's head and an elegant ornament. This animal is not accidental here, because it personified the deity of trade. Wallpaper and floor are the fruits of modernity. Previously, the walls were covered with leather of low density. It’s certainly immediately clear what kind of plant is next door. Door and window openings are trimmed with dark wood. You can't look outside from the dining room as the engraved glass faces the greenhouse.
Chic decor
In this room, as well as in others, thefurniture that was originally there. Once there was an oak table and 60 chairs upholstered in leather. A family of merchants, their work colleagues and friends ate here.
Next, you can proceed to the dance hall, whose walls are painted white. Lighting works here, thanks to which beautiful modeling with golden elements is better seen. This room was designed according to the models of buildings in which Louis XV lived. You can see a large number of bizarre patterns. There are ornaments depicting vegetation, musical instruments, wreaths, panels in the form of flowers, fairy-tale characters. The composition is harmonious and looks sophisticated.
It is complemented by pilasters and capiels with lyres. The window frames remained intact. The glasses are thick. Window sills are made of marble. Crystal pendants hang from the chandelier. She herself is made of bronze, she was remade during the reign of Soviet power. A hammer and sickle also appears here.
The marble fireplace, one of the best in St. Petersburg, has been preserved. It is decorated with picturesque sculptures of cupids. In the last century, the use of the White Hall was similar to ordinary assembly halls. Meetings and celebrations were held here. By the fireplace, there are beautiful pedestals that have turned from flower vases into lighting stands under the statues of Stalin and Lenin.
Mysticism within the walls of the estate
This place is valuable because you seem to be moving back into the past, getting into the Brusnitsyn mansion. The mirror here has been preserved since the time of the founders' administration. As you approach it, you will seeceiling and a gorgeous chandelier.
About an older object that hung in this place, there is a special legend, which says that it brought misfortune to the owners. It was ordered in Italy when the mansion was still under construction. According to history, the thing hung from Count Dracula in the tomb that was in Venice. It was believed that a person experiences unusual feelings, looking into a mirror surface.
When inexplicable troubles began to occur, this exhibit was removed for storage in the pantry. After the revolution, he disappeared. Although there are versions according to which this legend is just a fiction that attracts the increased attention of tourists here. Such details constantly attract new visitors to the Brusnitsyn mansion. How to get yourself into this mysterious world of the past? They say that it is extremely difficult and much easier to hire a guide or come here for a photo shoot.
Hookah bar
There is a smoking room near the White Hall, where the decor is well preserved. This room is considered one of the most valuable. This hookah was designed with an eye on the Moorish oriental style. You seem to fall into a fairy tale about Scheherazade. Here is a beautiful dome, which is decorated with gilded gypsum molding, decorated with bright colors.
There is a beautifully painted chandelier. Due to the fact that the object of illumination is reflected in the mirror, which has already lost its integrity and is divided into separate fragments, the room seems larger than it really is. “Glory to Allah” is written on the walls in exquisite script. In addition to the hookah, there were sofas, pillows and carpets. The floor covering was made during our tenure.
Main passage
From here you can get to the front marble staircase that goes from the front entrance, which is now boarded up. There were wooden ceilings, thanks to which the appearance of this place was preserved in its original form.
Protection was removed when it was necessary to prepare this place for filming. Since then, it has been open to the eyes of the guests of the mansion. There is no electric lighting here, but daylight gets here quite well. You can wander here for a very long time, bumping into all the new delightful details. It is worth making such a visit at least once in order to feel like a piece of a bygone time, to become its guest at least for a short moment.
