There are sights in the city of St. Petersburg not as famous as palaces and temples. These are ordinary residential buildings, multi-apartment and several floors. But the unique layout and architecture of these buildings impresses even the most sophisticated tourists. The majestic house of Baka keeps within its walls the history of several centuries. Outstanding personalities once lived in it: military men, scientists, artists. The current residents carefully treat the history of their house and try to restore as many lost facts as possible.
Apartment houses of St. Petersburg
The first of these buildings appeared in the XVIII century. A distinctive feature of apartment buildings is the presence of many apartments that are rented to new tenants for a rather long period of time. Each building has one owner who receives payment from tenants. The architects carefully planned the project of future structures. The presence of several entrances, front and back, stairs, courtyards was taken into account. It happened that former mansions gradually turned into tenement houses, extensions appeared, and a single living space was re-planned into several apartments.
The buildings of St. Petersburg are distinguishedan amazing feature - most of them have courtyards-wells inside. They are called internal courtyard spaces, surrounded on all sides by walls.
The area of such yards is usually small, in some cases there is practically no sunlight. Initially, their presence was not reflected in architectural projects. The courtyards were formed as a result of frequent redevelopment and the construction of additional outbuildings.
From history
Back's apartment building began to be erected in 1844, although it was then called differently. The building originally existed in the classical style. By order of the new owner, Julian Bak, a radical restructuring was carried out in the early 1900s. The new look of the building belongs to the Art Nouveau style. The interiors were decorated with chic marble stairs, stained-glass windows appeared in the windows. They were made to order by M. Frank and Company. Some have survived to this day. Until the middle of the century, there was an elevator with patterned metal bars. Separate apartments for residents occupied quite large areas. They included up to ten spacious rooms: a living room with a fireplace, bedrooms, a servant's quarters, and others. The height of the ceilings in the house exceeded 3 meters.
Once the ceiling in the apartments was decorated with stucco. Luxurious decoration attracted we althy citizens to their homes. The floor was carpeted and there were mirrors on the walls. Families of hereditary military men, officials, statesmen lived here. Times and generations have changed. After the revolution, the apartments turned into communal ones. The layout of the living quarters has been changed again.
Description
A distinctive feature of the building is a hanging yard. It is a complex system of transitions. From one courtyard through the arch you can get into another. At the moment, the structure is in disrepair.
Surviving wars and revolutions, the house was practically not restored during all the years of Soviet power. Plans to improve and restore its appearance appeared only in the 2000s. Buck's house was included in the list of architectural monuments of the city. Many details of interiors and exteriors are no longer preserved, they were damaged or looted. The walls of the front doors have been repeatedly damaged by vandals. All this, of course, indicates the need for serious restoration work.
Former residents
Yu. Buck published the newspaper "Rech", and in his main occupation he was a railway engineer. Originally from Lithuania, he was a member of the Jewish Colonization Society. In the house on Kirochnaya st. Buck lived with his family: his wife and daughter. Received a good income from other tenants. After the head of the family died in 1908, the women received a decent inheritance, but the house soon had to be sold.
In the 30s of the XX century there was an apartment of A. Mariengof, a poet and playwright, who was a close friend of S. Yesenin. And in the 80s, under strange circumstances, Y. Kamorny, a popular theater and film actor in those years, was shot dead in one of the premises. There are still many rumors and mysteries around this death. The investigation did not lead tosolving the mystery, what was the exact reason for the murder and what preceded it.
Modern State of Home
Current apartment owners take good care of their home. They even created a group on social networks dedicated to the history of the Buck house in St. Petersburg. You can see many unique photographs posted online, interesting facts found in archives and in the memories of past generations. Visitors are not advised to go to the roof of the building: it can be dangerous, in some places the fortifications are outdated, the materials are rotten. It is strictly forbidden to rip off and damage decor elements, litter and write on the walls. Recently, special signs have been hung in the front doors asking you not to smoke.
Buck's house has repeatedly become a platform for filming documentaries and feature films. These were historical films, detective series, such as "Secrets of the Investigation" and others. Tours for those who wish are held every week in the front doors. Small fluffy "residents" - a little shy, but friendly to guests, local cats help to create a special cozy atmosphere.
How to find Buck's house: address
You can get to it from the metro station "Chernyshevskaya", which is located very close. Buck's house is located at: st. Kirochaya, 24. The building now houses a bank and several shops, as well as a beauty salon. Therefore, getting inside the courtyard will not be difficult.
Opposite the house is another old building, the former barracks. Allthese structures stand on Kirochnaya Street.
For those who are especially imbued with interest in the building and want to stay there for a while, there are several options. Some tenants rent apartments to curious tourists. A hostel was also opened in the house, on the site of a former casino. The situation is vaguely reminiscent of the life of communal apartments, which remained in the not so distant Soviet past. Somewhere there is still stucco on the ceilings, old doors.
