Monument to Courage – Tashkent

Monument to Courage - Tashkent

Monument to Courage – Tashkent

Monument to Courage – Tashkent

Tashkent was hit by an earthquake on April 26, 1966 at 05: 23 local time. It had a magnitude of 5.1 on the Richter Scale with the epicentre right under the city at a depth of from 3 to 8 kilometres. Most of the buildings were destroyed (including the historic ‘Old Town – which is now only a replica of the original), remarkably no more than 200 people were killed but 300,000 were left homeless.

Tashkent, with the assistance of the other Union Republics of the former Soviet Union, was rebuilt and even extended following its destruction and the monument commemorates that effort and unity of purpose. (If such an event were to happen again it’s unlikely that such a joint effort would come to the city’s aid.)

The monument was created by the sculptor and artist Dmitry Ryabichev and was inaugurated on May 20, 1976.

It’s basically in three parts. On the left hand side is a black, labradorite cube with the date of the disaster on one side and a round clock face showing the time the earthquake struck on an adjacent side. This cube is split through the date and this fracture leads in the direction of the main element of the piece – a group of a man, woman and child.

The male stands in front of the woman and child, in a protective stance, with his right hand facing any approaching danger. Although this fits into the traditional trope of the male being the protector the woman herself is not entirely passive as her right arm also extends towards the threat, with the palm of her hand ready to push back. She has turned so that the child, which clings to her neck and which she supports with her left arm, is as far away as possible from the danger. The stance of both of them gives the impression they are walking towards the threat and not running away from it. Note should be taken of the plinth upon which they stand as this continues the idea of a fractured earth with the jagged line that runs away from the cube.

The other element of the monument is a number of bas relief panels which form a back ‘wall’ to the couple. Here are represented the various trades that were needed for the reconstruction of the city. As is the case in many Soviet era monuments (celebrating both military and civilian events), here women are depicted as playing a role equivalent to that of the men in the construction trades.

The story of the reconstruction reads from the left to the right, starting with basic clearing away and preparation for the new buildings and ending in the festival celebrating the completion of the rebuilding of the country’s capital city.

The area is clean and obviously well tended demonstrating that this monument still has resonance amongst the people of Tashkent.

Location;

Sharaf Rashidov Avenue 74

GPS;

41.32370 N

69.27270 E

How to get there;

It’s about a 10-15 minute walk from Abdulla Kodiriy Metro station along the street with the name of the station.

VI Lenin in Balykchi – Kyrgyzstan

VI Lenin in Balykchi - Kyrgyzstan - 03

VI Lenin in Balykchi – Kyrgyzstan – 03

VI Lenin in Balykchi – Kyrgyzstan

This is an unusual monument to VI Lenin – or at least I haven’t seen anything similar.

Here we have an image of the head of Vladimir Ilyich in a metal frame that sits on the roof of a building on the edge of Balykchi.

VI Lenin in Balykchi - Kyrgyzstan - 02

VI Lenin in Balykchi – Kyrgyzstan – 02

How it’s constructed I’m unable to say as I wasn’t able to get any closer than looking up from the street. Whether it’s possible to get up on the roof I also can’t say – bad planning meaning I was pushed for time and couldn’t investigate any options.

VI Lenin in Balykchi - Kyrgyzstan - 04

VI Lenin in Balykchi – Kyrgyzstan – 04

The building is now a driving school but don’t know what it might have been during Soviet times which merited such a roof top decoration. The image appears to be in a good condition so someone must have taken care of the framework over the decades.

VI Lenin in Balykchi - Kyrgyzstan - 01

VI Lenin in Balykchi – Kyrgyzstan – 01

(A lot of ‘unknowns’ here, sorry for the lack of any more information.)

Location;

The building is alongside the A363, on the western edge of the town, about 200m from, and on the same side as, the bus station.

GPS;

42.45146 N

76.17081 E

Moscow Metro – Ploshchad Ilyicha – Line 8

Ploshchad Ilyicha – Line 8 - 01

Ploshchad Ilyicha – Line 8 – 01

More on the USSR

Moscow Metro – a Socialist Realist Art Gallery

Moscow Metro – Ploshchad Ilyicha – Line 8

Ploshchad Ilyicha (Russian: Площадь Ильича) is a station on the Moscow Metro’s Kalininsko-Solntsevskaya Line. It was opened on 30 December 1979 as part of the line’s first stage.

It is named after the Ilyich Square (indirectly referring to Vladimir Ilyich Lenin by his patronymic). The square has since been renamed to Rogozhskaya Zastava Square.

The station is a deep-level pylon tri-vault design. The connotation of the location’s former name, influenced the architectural theme of the station realisation of Lenin’s ideas by architects L. Popov and V. Klokov and engineers Ye. Barsky and Yu. Murmotsev.

The station walls are faced with white koelga marble, which are punctuated by metallic artworks depicting the hammer and sickle. Thick cubic shaped pylons are faced with dark red marble seliyeti, ‘rest’ on a laboradorite socle. The floor is covered with red and grey granite, whilst lightning elements are mounted into a metallic carcass that is fixed to top of the vaults, a straight one for the central hall, and a zig-zagged shaped for the platform. At the rear of the central hall is a large bas-relief of Vladimir Lenin created by the People’s Artist of the USSR, Nikolai Tomsky.

The station’s vestibule, designed by architect I. Petukhova, is connected directly to the central hall by a three-escalator ascend, and is located underground under the Rogozhskaya Zastava square.

Text above from Wikipedia.

Ploshchad Ilyicha – Line 8 - 02

Ploshchad Ilyicha – Line 8 – 02

Location;

Rogozhskaya Zastava Square

GPS;

55.7472°N

37.6824°E

Depth;

46 metres (151ft)

Opened;

30 December 1979

More on the USSR

Moscow Metro – a Socialist Realist Art Gallery