QR-35 - A Habitable house (Zasodimsky’s House)

Object	A Habitable house (Zasodimsky’s House)
Dating	the middle of the 19th century.
Type	A historical monument.
Status	a cultural heritage site of federal importance.
Address	6 Leningradskaya St., Vologda, Russia.
A brief description	A sample of a wooden town house of mid 19^th century built in traditions of late classicism.
Condition	good.
Contemporary use	It is occupied by the museum «The World of the Forgotten Things», a branch of the Vologda State Museum-Reserve.
History The house was built in the middle of the 19^th century. At the end of the 19^th – the beginning of the 20^th centuries its owner was Dmitry Nikolayevich Panteleyev, Vologda merchant of the 2nd guild. It is known that he had 17 children, and apparently that big family occupied the entire house. D. N. Panteleyev owned a shop of haberdashery goods on Kamenny Bridge in Vologda. After the establishment of the Soviet power the house was expropriated and made communal. And its former owners were sent into exile to the Kola Peninsula. According to the family legend, Dmitry Nikolayevich died there. In the local history literature the building by tradition is called Zasodimsky’s House. Under that name it was registered as a monument of history and culture. However, part of the local historians and museum workers consider that the cultural significance of this house is not confirmed factually, as the Russian writer-populist Pavel Vladimirovich Zasodimsky (1843-1912) lived nearby in another house, which is not preserved now. Since 1991 the house has been under the authority of the Vologda State Museum-Reserve. Initially, due to the firm belief that P.V. Zasodimsky had lived here during his political exile in 1868-1869, the idea to open here a literary museum was discussed. However, the documentary evidence for this assumption could not be found, so the museum «The World of the Forgotten Things» was opened in it. Downstairs, in the house of a wealthy citizen of the 19^th century the interiors of a living-room, a study, a dining room, and a children’s room have been restored. The latter, also known as “Sonechka’s room“, is particularly popular among visitors. Paying tribute to the tradition connected with the name of the house, an exposition dedicated to P.V.Zasodimsky is arranged in the study. Downstairs, samples of the 18^th – 19^th centuries paintings from Vologda manors of the nobility are presented. The Museum employees are looking for new forms of work with visitors. They organize literary and musical salons, meetings with art figures, and arrange exhibitions. Activities in these small rooms are held in chamber atmosphere and heartedness. The museum «The World of the Forgotten Things» is popular among the Vologda intellectuals and known outside the city.
Architectural description The mansion, designed in the tradition of late classicism, attracts attention by its lovely composition and modest decoration. The main two-storey body of this timber sheathed house is supplemented with a groin mezzanine, the four sides of which are crowned with pediments with original windows in tympanums. The classical three-part structure of the main facade, overlooking Leningradskaya street, is emphasized by an overhanging central risalit with a four - pilaster portico making a separate mezzanine terrace. Profiled plank smoothness of the walls is enlivened by the variety of window frames. On the ground floor they have a bow-shaped end. On the first floor there are both arched windows with rosettes in tympanums and rectangular ones crowned with three-angled head moldings. The facade, facing Zasodimsky street, is decorated with a balcony of the mezzanine with sawn carving fencing. In the courtyard there is a coach house (at 6A Leningradskaya street), a rectangular in plan household structure, built with butt joints, of the late 19^th century. Despite overall brevity of its architectural design, the decoration of its central part gives expressiveness to its exterior. An overhanging cornice forms a canopy with a gable rise over the entrance, resting on a pair of logs-pillars. The gallery along the structure provided additional storage space for household equipment and at the same time visually enriched the facade.
Restoration The house was restored in the late 1980s - early 1990s. The coach-house was almost entirely built of new material during the restoration works of late 20^th century. Text by F.Y. Konovalov, O.A. Plekh. Translated by Olga Leonidova.
Information about the partner of the project In 2013, through the funding of our project partner, the communications and mobile operator Tele2, an information plate containing a QR-code was installed on the house.