Kungur: sights and history

In the southeast of the Perm Krai is Kungur. The sights of this city can surprise even the most experienced traveler. After all, there is a huge amount of both natural and man-made objects that are worth seeing. Moreover, it's quite easy to get to Kungur, as the city is crossed by two automobile routes - Perm - Yekaterinburg and Perm - Solikamsk, the Trans-Siberian Railway, and also the railway.

History of Kungur

The foundation date of the city is 1648, and the place is the Kungurka river. In 1662, the settlement was destroyed due to the Seite revolt, and in 1663 Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich ordered to restore it, however, already in a new place, namely at the confluence of two rivers - Sylva and Ireni.

A convenient location contributed to the fact that the city became the commercial and administrative center of the province, and after a while - the center of the Perm province. In the XIX century Kungur was a large merchant city, unofficially it was called "the tea capital of the Russian Empire". During this period, many merchants lived here, on whose money those Kungur landmarks were erected, which today appear to the eyes of the inhabitants and visitors of the city. This is the church, and manors, and schools, and schools, and living rooms, and much more.

Churches of Kungur

Since the foundation of Kungur, it has always been considered the center of the Orthodox culture of the Kama region. He retained this status today. Now 4 Orthodox churches (Nikolskaya, Preobrazhenskaya, Tikhvinskaya and Vsekhsvyatskaya) have Kungur on their territory. Sights in this area will be of interest to both religious personalities and architectural connoisseurs.

The Tikhvin church was built in the 18th century by the means of voivode Yu.A. Matyunin. The temple is a stone baroque five-domed double-edged structure. The chetverik and entablature of the platbands are decorated with a cornice with a "bug" frieze. At the end of the 19th century, the church was rebuilt thanks to the donations of Alexander Gubkin, who was a Russian tea merchant. At the end of the 20th century the Tikhvin church was converted to a cinema "October", but today the church is functioning, and Orthodox Christians can pray in it, the place of residence of which is Kungur.

Sights of the city also include the Transfiguration Church. It is the only shrine in the territory of the province, which is crowned by a "baptized" five-headed one. Built this temple was in the period from 1768 to 1782 at the expense of IM Khlebnikov, who died in 1774, defending the city from the troops of Pugachev. At the moment the temple is fully operational.

Living rooms of the city

Trade and merchant city - this status has been endowed with Kungur for a long time. The sights that can be seen today on its territory, confirm this. It is about the living rooms of the city. On the Cathedral Square there is a building that was erected in 1865-1876. It is represented in the form of a closed polygon, which is filled with trading rows along the perimeter. The architecture of the structure traces the style of classicism with a touch of eclecticism. On the outside of the guest yard is a covered gallery, and inside the playground, where people often walk, who for one reason or another have come to Kungur.

Attractions of the city also include the Small Guest Court, which was erected in 1872-1874 in the style of eclecticism with elements of Old Russian style and oriental motifs. Now the building houses the Museum of Merchant History.

Ancient educational institutions of the city

Considering the sights of Kungur (Perm region) one can not ignore its educational institutions, which were erected at different periods of time. So, in 1878 the merchant AS Gubkin built the Elizabethan needlework school. The institution the merchant erected in memory of his daughter Elizabeth, who passed away very early. The school was designed for the education and upbringing of orphans. Since 1926, the building was a pedagogical school, and now - a college of industrial technology, management and design.

In 1877 a technical school appeared in the city, the building of which was equipped with all the novelties and conveniences of that time - Dutch oven ovens, ventilation system, etc. The school studied physics, mathematics, technology, chemistry, drawing, and also produced various products, among which Machine tools, drills and much more. Now there is a motor transport college, but it is also interesting for tourists, since its building includes in its list the sights of Kungur. Photos of this educational institution can be seen below. In addition, guests of the city should take a look at the four-year and real schools.

Manors and Mansions of Kungur

For several hundred years, many merchants lived on the territory of the city of Kungur. Attractions for this reason now include a huge number of diverse estates and mansions, which in due time were erected by these or other personalities.

So, in 1927 SI Gubkin organized a manor on the territory of which there was a wooden house, a wing, a barn, stables and a bathhouse. After the death of his father, his son A. S. Gubkin in the 1860s and 70s erected a new stone on the site of the old house, which can still be seen today.

Particular attention deserves the estate of the merchant E. Ya. Dubinin, the construction of the mansion on the territory of which began in 1883. The building was made in the style of brick eclecticism. A mezzanine with a pediment is built in the center of the house, the latter is completed with a balcony. Nearby is the Tikhvin Church.

In addition to the aforementioned, the attention is paid to the mansions of VA Shcherbakov, MI Gribushin, GK Kuznetsov, AP Chuloshnikov, NI Kovalev and many other merchants who used to live on the territory of the city of Kungur. Places of interest for such a plan will be especially interesting for fans of history and connoisseurs of architecture.

Natural beauty of Kungur

However, numerous man-made sights of Kungur are not the only thing that a city is rich in. On its territory and in the vicinity there are many natural beauties - rivers, lakes, hills. But the most attention deserves the Kungur Ice Cave, which is the first in Russia, equipped for tourists. This natural site is located in the north-eastern part of the city, in Ice Mountain, which is located between the rivers Iren and Shakva.

At the moment, 5.7 km of the cave are explored, but the excursion route is only 1.5 km. Under the ground there are 60 lakes filled with crystal clear water. Annually about 100 000 people visit the cave. Perhaps, soon the object will be included in the UNESCO heritage list, since this issue is already being discussed.