Masterpieces, hidden in plain sight

[SergeiSK]

The word "Immured" suddenly became almost the key issues in the main Russian news. What icons are hidden behind a thick layer of plaster, discovered in two towers of the Kremlin, the Hermitage in sculpture known master beginning of last century ran, breaking through a brick "terminations", was covering a secret ... Events niche out of the ordinary, unique?

In 1997, the unexpected discoveries were made on the building of the Kiev railway station in Moscow. When in the repair of the main facade began to survey two huge bas-reliefs from the arms of the USSR, it became clear that they are installed "with sugar. Square plate with a mosaic depicting the main state symbols of the Soviet Union closed the niches in which to "hide" the old emblems of Moscow and Kiev. They decorated the facade, even when the station was built in 1914-1917 years. During the Soviet era bas-relief "heraldic paintings with religious content" (on the arms of a featured George, George, Michael the archangel), it was decided to replace, and in 1925 on the facade of the station strengthened the two bas-relief with the emblem of the Soviet Union. For many years it was believed that the pre-revolutionary image with were destroyed, and only seven decades later they could find. Now the facade of the Kiev station returned to its original form.

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In a forced "confinement" and oblivion had to spend a few years a huge mosaic adorning the front walls of the central hall station Novoslobodskaya. The author of this work was the famous artist Pavel Korin. He created a panel to be called "world - the world!": Meet people going barefoot woman with a child, the pull handle to the sky, the sun (only instead of the sun in the upper part of the mosaic was placed a portrait of Stalin). As the author tells these lines, one of the sponsors station, architect A. Strelkov, Nikita Khrushchev, who in 1951, shortly before the opening of the station, came to look at the new underground palace found in the creation korinskom ideological flaw: Why is it you barefoot ? What, in our country people do not have enough shoes? Why discredit Soviet power? "I had after that visit, hastily corrected mistake -" shoe "allegorical-home mother in a kind of Roman sandals. Nevertheless, the antipathy to the "Arts" to "Novoslobodskaya Nikita Sergeyevich still preserved, and soon after his arrival in power of the Central Committee of the order was: a mosaic of removed! The sponsors Novoslobodskaya took the risk and decided to save korinskuyu work of destruction. Panel blocked outside fake wall marble. The Motherland was in a bricked state of almost 10 years - until Khrushchev's removal from power. Many Muscovites already forgotten about this decorating Novoslobodskaya. Only in the Brezhnev era painter Korin managed to get permission to return the mosaic in the interiors of the station. The decorative wall was dismantled in the top panel instead of a portrait of Stalin put an image strip with the words "World Peace" and the notorious "Khrushchev" sandals were removed, leaving the Motherland barefoot, as was originally intended by the author.

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Among the most "epic" findings made by the will of the happy accident specialist art historians - three icons of the so-called Zvenigorod, whose author believed Andrei Rublev. By studying ancient documents, scholars have concluded that the famous Russian painter to carry out work for the cathedral Savvino-Storozhevsky Monastery, near Zvenigorod. However, neither the church nor the other nearby ancient buildings - Zvenigorod cathedral on the town - the participants of the search expedition, who worked here in 1918, icons Rublevskoe letter did not help: in the past few centuries, they had to replace with new ones. Scientists have already completely lost faith in the success of his enterprise, when their attention was attracted by a rickety woodshed near the church hut. Inside it under a pile of firewood found three darkened by time board-icons with poluosypavshimsya layer of painting - "The Saviour", "Archangel Michael" and "The Apostle Paul. These were the remains of the iconostasis created Rublev. Now carefully restored the icons Zvenigorod is one of the main gems of the exposition of the Tretyakov Gallery.

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Hide, "walled up" can be, it turns out, not only paintings, sculpture, applied art, but even the old buildings. When in the mid 1950's architects-restorers examined the neighborhoods of old buildings in Zariadye, adjacent to the never built Seven Sisters, their attention was attracted mostly to the numerous temples, standing along the street. Razin (now - Varvarka). But squeezed between them faceless four-story house, apparently built no earlier than the end of XIX century., Aroused connoisseurs of antiquity only disappointment: dismal "box" only obscures the panorama of the street! They found, however, the specialist, who decided to get acquainted with the house more thoroughly - known restorer P. Baranowski. Sondage made in several places chetyrehetazhki, scientist discovered the secret of the building: behind the walls and add-ons later years hiding a unique monument of architecture - the long-term studies have to clarify that this House of Old English Court XVI-XVII centuries. Later, the return of old, "Old Russian" appearance of this construction, which became a decoration of the sanctuary in charge.

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Conducted a few years ago the extensive work on the restoration of the Martha and Maria monastery in the historic center of Moscow gave the participants a few surprising discoveries.
As workers took to prepare to repair the porch of a wooden house, which has remained here since before the Revolution, and started cleaning up closed on all sides by the closet under the stairs, you will find a hidden church bell. Weight Bronze handsome about 6 pounds, diameter - more than half the height - 70 cm Bell was in good condition, on the side of his engraved monogram - initials "EF" with a crown on it (this picture is clearly dedicated to the foundress of the monastery, the Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna). Probably found a copy was made for the Belfry main temple - Pokrovsky Cathedral, but that experts have determined that the casting is not among the old. When and why the bell was hidden under the porch - is unclear.
In winter 2007 construction, repairing the Pokrovsky Cathedral, designed by renowned architect A. Shchusjeva, waiting for another discovery. In the depths of the attic space above the south aisle, behind a pile of debris at the base of the drum, was hidden in the folded big chandelier (a chandelier), decorate before the central part of the cathedral. Such a surprise, of course, delighted restorers, but also disappointed, too: it was believed that this chandelier destroyed after the Bolsheviks closed the monastery and so the restorers spent painstaking work to restore the drawing huge lamp on Old photographs. The new chandelier, a copy of them already have the make and hang in the temple, when a cache removed the original.

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Many years ago, fellow of the Russian Museum in Leningrad, Gregory Presnov, repeatedly passed on the way to work through the Mikhailovsky Garden, drew attention to the pile of gray rocks among the trees. Considering them attentively Finally, art realized that some fragments of statues, carved from limestone - have survived even the heads of some of the sculptures. At the insistence of Presnov "boulders" were transported to the museum. More detailed studies showed that the sculptures were made in the XVIII century. designed by the legendary architect Rastrelli and first decorated the balustrade on the roof of the Winter Palace. In December 1837 during a fire that engulfed the palace buildings, part of the white stone statues destroyed, others were damaged by flames and gradually began to crumble. When, in 1890, the breakaway piece of one of the statues fell from the roof to the ground directly under the windows of apartments of the heir-the Crown Prince, it was decided to hide away all Rastrelli "stones". The old statues and vases have replaced their copper copies (they are on the Winter and today), and the wrecks of the overthrown with balustrades statues were taken to the dump in different places Petersburg.

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And again - the Hermitage. The author of one of the sensational findings here was at one time, Alexander Pushkin. It was lucky "dig" in closed rooms for visiting the museum building huge statue of Voltaire, by the French master Houdon commissioned by Catherine II.
A few years this statue was adorned pavilion Grotto in Tsarskoe Selo. However, once in 1791 in Paris, the revolutionary march began, participants were called Voltaire's "inspired the struggle for people's freedom", Russian empress angry at a French free-thinker. As a result, his sculpture was taken away from Tsarskoselski Grotto. Almost half a century the fate of this creation Houdon remained unknown. In 1831, began work on the history of Peter I, Pushkin wanted to see the documents sent by Lomonosov and Shuvalov Voltaire, as he wrote the "History of Russia under Peter the Great." After the death of the famous French philosopher, these papers together with the library of his being sent to Russia and kept in a room in the Old Hermitage. Login there was strictly forbidden, and Pushkin had to seek personal approval of the Emperor Nicholas, to get into a closed store. Caught in a darkened room, Alexander suddenly, much to his surprise, literally nose to nose faced by Voltaire - sculptural sculpture of Houdon was squeezed into a narrow space between the bookshelves. The statue of Pushkin was so pleased that he even sketched it on the memory in his notebook. But just over half a century later, in 1887, disgraced marble statue of the philosopher, freethinker was on display in the main museum of the Northern capital.

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But in this case happened to have found "treasure" of a different kind. In the early 1960's to Riga pulled route the new pipeline. According to the project, the highway was to be just on the outskirts of one of the villages. The only structure, stranded on the road diggers who were digging a trench for laying pipes, was buried, arranged by local farmer on the farm. The builders have promised to equip the master instead of a new "underground storage" in any place where he can show, however Lett categorically refused to give approval for the destruction of the old cellar, do not even agree on monetary compensation. Then it was decided to operate from a position of strength. In the morning, when construction equipment moved to the ill-fated plot, stubborn host never been found. Gasovik knocked the lock on the cellar door, went inside - and literally dumbfounded: under the guise of ordinary peasant cellar was masked by an underground bunker. And in that secret bunker was a German tank! Fighting vehicle of World remained excellent: when the military due to "the scene, dragged charged battery and cleared the exit from the bunker, retrotank its course safely escaped from the shelter. Further fate armored colossus, as well as the fate of fugitive peasant tankovladeltsa, the builder of the pipeline, which happen to know this story is unknown.

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Sometimes the lucky ones who found "bricked" cultural values, it was possible thanks to a pretty good fortune to fix your budget. Several years ago a student bought at a flea market in Berlin for 215 USD a sagging old sofa. Brought it home, tried to expand ... And I saw lying inside a small picture. The experts approached by the new owner of the couch, determined that the painting is written in the early XVII century. an unknown artist, and offered to put the find at an auction in Hamburg. There now bought for 27,600 dollars! Nice to receive a raise in scholarships this student (whose name, incidentally, in the Chronicle newspaper has not been named).
But if you're lucky, you can "accidentally" make money and much more - all in the same, at flea markets. A resident of the town of Adamstown in the U.S., wandering among the rows of merchants, decided to buy a very unimpressive picture: the buyer to fork out $ 4 just for a link to your original frame. When I got home, the American pulled out of the canvas baguette to throw worthless painting. However, it seems that the picture of something "with a secret: lay under canvas paper with a print of the Declaration of Independence U.S.! July 4, 1776 were printed and distributed to all 500 such official copies of which exist to this day, less than three dozen copies. Apparently, one of the previous owners put the pictures available to him a rarity, thrusting his canvas, but for some reason and forgot to print in this cache. Locate a copy of the Declaration, "a connoisseur framework" sold it at auction, where the historical reprint managed to rescue the nearly 2.5 million dollars.

Alexander Dobrovolsky
(Moskovsky Komsomolets number 25386 on June 28, 2010)

[олег назаров]

In the early 90's my friends sprawled komunalku found room 40m (even PIBe about her no one knew anything) - the entrance was boarded up and sealed with wallpaper, there are no windows - furniture, chandeliers, game table - all pre-revolutionary <!--~ 1

[Кирилл Сызранский]

Oleg Nazarov, years, probably more than 15 back in one of our former county town builders found a walled storage room with a private printing house. There was a lot of finished products, postcards, business cards, brochures, menus, and printing plates, zinc plates like. Here they are, as a Non-Ferrous, were valuable for those builders. Paper as all products sold for a symbolic "litrovku" one local amateur numismatist, philatelist. He no longer trails and quiet all sold decently.
And it's almost time to neighboring Orenburg region in one village, the former village, found a box of Cossack sabers of 1881 with the stigma of Zlatoust weapons factory in the year of production 1893 and with the stigma of receiving weapons in parchment paper and butter. And also during the redevelopment of the ground floor two-story house and that too falshstenu.