Sights of Irkutsk

Around Ulitsa Dekabrskikh Sobyty

Decembrist Historical and Memorial Museum

  • Volkonsky House: 10 Pereulok Volkonskogo, Trubetskoy House: 64 Ulitsa Dzerzhinskogo
  • http://imd38.ru/
  • 10:00 - 18:00. Volkonsky House closed on Mondays, Trubetskoy House closed on Tuesdays.

In 1825 a group of officers and noblemen who became known as the Decembrists staged an unsuccessful rebellion in St Petersburg against the autocracy of the emperor. As a result many participants were exiled to Siberia and the first group of Decembrists arrived in Irkutsk in 1826 on route to a hard labour camp. After completing their sentence of hard-labour, Decembrists leaders Prince Sergey Trubetskoy and Prince Sergey Volkonsky were allowed to settle in Irkutsk and were joined by… Read more »

Museum of the History of Irkutsk

  • 16A Ulitsa Frank-Kamenetskogo
  • http://irkmuseum.ru/
  • 10:00 - 18:00. Closed on Tuesdays.

The Museum of the History of Irkutsk started its life as part of the history department of the Regional Museum which moved into its own building in 2009. Today the history has four main expositions: the Archaeology and Ethnography of Irkutsk, Irkutsk in the 17th and 18th Centuries, 19th Century Irkutsk and 20th Century Irkutsk and details the city's multi-national character and the daily lives of its people throughout the ages.  Located in the same building is the Craft House… Read more »

Vladimir Sukachev Estate

  • 112 Ulitsa Dekabrskikh Sobyty
  • http://www.museum.irk.ru/
  • 10:00 - 18:00. Closed on Mondays.

  The former estate house of Vladimir Sukachev is now run as a branch of the Museum of Art of the Irkutsk Region which was founded by Sukachev. The house was built in the 1880s on the orders of Sukhachev who was a well-known patron of the arts and collector. His collection was first held in a gallery in this house before becoming the main part of the Museum of Art. Today the estate house has been fully restored and since 2001 has held a memorial exhibition dedicated to the life and… Read more »

In the Historical Centre

Assumption of the Virgin Mary Catholic Church

  • 1 Ulitsa Sukhe-Batora
  • http://uspenie.irkutsk.ru

The most famous catholic church in Irkutsk is the Assumption of the Virgin Mary Catholic Church which is a protected building located in the historic centre of the city. The original church here was built in the mid-19th century by the local Polish community, most of whom ended up in Irkutsk as a result of their exile for participating in the Polish uprising of 1830. The current neo-gothic version was built as a replacement between 1881 and 1884. During the Soviet Period the… Read more »

Emperor Alexander III Monument

  • Outside 2 Ulitsa Karla Marksa

Irkutsk's monument to Emperor Alexander III was erected in 1908 to commemorate the emperor's decision to build the Trans-Siberian Railway. The monument depicts a statue of the emperor while its pedestal depicts governor-generals of Eastern Siberia Nikolai Muravyov-Amursky and Mikhail Speransky, and the Cossack Yermak who played a significant role in Russia's conquest of Siberia. In 1920 the statue was removed and destroyed. It was briefly replaced with a Lenin Statue and then with… Read more »

Epiphany Cathedral

  • 2 Ulitsa Nizhnyaya Naberezhnaya

The first church to stand on the spot where the Epiphany Cathedral is now located was Ss Peter and Paul's Church which was built in 1693 out of wood. Then it was situated just outside the Epiphany Tower of the Irkutsk Kremlin. This church burned down in 1716 and in 1718 work began on replacing it with a stone version. It was only completed in 1746. In 1812 a second bell tower was constructed next to the cathedral. After the Revolution the church was closed and it was threatened… Read more »

Eternal Flame and Memorial Complex

  • Nizhnyaya Naberezhnaya

Irkutsk's main memorial to the fallen of the Second World War is located in front of the Irkutsk Region Administration building and consists of an eternal flame. The flame was ignited on 9 May 1975 on the 20th anniversary of the end of the war using a torch which itself was lit from the eternal flame in Moscow. Names of those citizens of Irkutsk who never returned are inscribed on the wall behind the flame. In 1995 the complex was added to with the opening of the Alley of Veterans… Read more »

Exaltation of the Cross Church

  • 1 Ulitsa Sedova

Irkutsk's Exaltation of the Cross Church was built between 1747 and 1760 and is one of the most striking examples of the architectural style known as Siberian baroque, characterised by the bright decorations on the church's façade. The church is also unique for Siberian churches in the fact that its original 19th century interior has been preserved. Read more »

Moscow Gates

  • Nizhnyaya Naberezhnaya

Standing on Irkutsk's lower embankment of the Angara is a triumphal arch which is known as the Moskovskie or Moscow Gates as it marks the entrance to the city if coming from the European part of Russia. Construction of the gates began in 1811 to mark the 10 year anniversary of Emperor Alexander I's reign. In 1858 a second pair of gates were erected in the city similar to the Moscow Gates. These were located on the east of the city and were known as the Armurskie or Amur Gates. Due… Read more »

Regional Museum of the Irkutsk Region: History Department

  • 2 Ulitsa Karla Marksa
  • http://www.museum.irkutsk.ru/
  • 10:00 – 18:00 (summer: 10:00 – 20:00)

Irkutsk's regional museum was founded in 1782 upon the initiative of local nobles and merchants and is one of the oldest museums in Siberia. In 1879 the museum was destroyed in the Great Fire of Irkutsk, but reopened in 1888. The museum today is divided into two main departments: one dedicated to history and one to nature, which are both located on Ulitsa Karla Marksa. The Regional Museum's History Department is located in the main building which was built in 1883 especially to… Read more »

Regional Museum of the Irkutsk Region: Nature Department

  • 11 Ulitsa Karla Marksa
  • http://www.museum.irkutsk.ru/
  • 10:00 – 18:00 (summer: 10:00 – 20:00)

Irkutsk's regional museum was founded in 1782 upon the initiative of local nobles and merchants and is one of the oldest museums in Siberia. In 1879 the museum was destroyed in the Great Fire of Irkutsk, but reopened in 1888. The museum today is divided into two main departments: one dedicated to history and one to nature, which are both located on Ulitsa Karla Marksa. The Nature Department is located in an early 20th century two-story building and was opened in 1920. On display… Read more »

Saviour Church

  • 2 Ulitsa Sukhe-Batora
  • http://spashram-irk.ru/

The Saviour Church is the oldest surviving stone building in Irkutsk. The first church to stand in this location, which was originally within the walls of the Irkutsk Kremlin, was built out of wood in 1672. Work on the present-day stone version began in 1706 and was completed in 1710. In the mid-18th century the small cubic church was extended with the construction of a bell tower. The most prominent feature though is the early-19th century frescos which decorate the outside of the… Read more »

Siberian Art Department

  • 23 Ulitsa Karla Marksa
  • http://www.museum.irk.ru/
  • 10:00 - 18:00. Closed on Mondays.

The Vladimir Sukachev Museum of Art of the Irkutsk Region has a separate department which is the only museum of art totally dedicated to Siberian art. The museum exhibits Siberian works of art from ancient times to modern day, including idols, icons, wooden sculptures, painting and pieces of china. The museum is located within a late-19th century mansion of a former merchant and gold industrialist. Read more »

St Charalambos' Church

  • 59 Ulitsa 5-y Armii

St Charalambos' Church is also known as Archangel Michael Church as it is dedicated to both saints. The original version was built out of wood in 1738 but was replaced in stone in 1777 which has survived today. Traditionally the church was used to bless sailors before they set out on a voyage.  Read more »

Trinity Church and St Gregory of Neocaesarea's Church

  • 8 Ulitsa 5-y Armii

The Trinity Church is one of the oldest surviving churches in Irkutsk. It was built in the second half of the 18th century and consecrated in 1778. It is an example of what is known as Siberian baroque. During the Soviet era the church was used as a planetarium. Just next to this church is the smaller and simpler St Gregory of Neocaesarea's Church which dates from 1805 and was built in the classical style. Read more »

Vladimir Lenin Monument

  • Intersection of Ulitsa Lenina and Ulitsa Karla Marksa

Standing on the cross road of Ulitsa Lenina and Ulitsa Karla Marksa is Irkutsk's main statue of Vladimir Lenin. It was unveiled in 1952 and is the work of sculptor Nikolai Tomsky. The statue is in fact a copy of an earlier statue by Tomsky which still stands in the city of Voronezh. There are also several other Lenin statues around the city. Read more »

Vladimir Sukachev Museum of Art of the Irkutsk Region

  • 5 Ulitsa Lenina
  • http://www.museum.irk.ru/
  • 10:00 - 18:00. Closed on Tuesdays.

Irkutsk's Museum of Art is considered to have been founded in 1870 when local collector and patron of the arts Vladimir Sukachev purchased the first painting, however the collection housed inside Sukhachev's own estate house was only opened to the public in the 1880s - becoming the first gallery in Siberia. At the beginning of the 20th century construction of a special building to house the collection began and in 1920 the collection became part of the city's regional museum, then… Read more »

North of the River Ushakovka

Admiral Aleksandr Kolchak Monument

  • outside 14 Ulitsa Angarskaya

Admiral Aleksandr Kolchak was a prominent leader of the White forces during the Russian Civil War who was even briefly declared the Russian supreme ruler. Kolchak ended his days in Irkutsk where he was handed over as a prisoner to the Bolsheviks who had him executed by firing squad in 1920. His body was dumped into the frozen River Angara. This monument to the controversial figure in Russian history was unveiled in 2004 on the 130th anniversary of his birth. Read more »

Knyaze-Vladimirsky Monastery

  • 52 Ulitsa Kashtakovskaya

The Knyaze-Vladimirsky Monastery is dedicated to the Russian saint Prince Vladimir who is created with converting Rus to Orthodoxy. The monastery was founded in 1888 on the 900th anniversary of Rus adopting Orthodoxy. Its main church is the beautiful St Vladimir's Church which was built between 1888 and 1895. In 1922 the monastery and its church were closed and only reopened in the 1990s. Read more »

Our Lady of Kazan Church

  • 34 Ulitsa Barrikad

The Our Lady of Kazan Church was built in Irkutsk's Rabochee (Worker's) District between 1885 and 1892. It was dedicated to the Our Lady of Kazan Icon which was the same dedication as Irkutsk's main cathedral - the Our Lady of Kazan Cathedral which stood in the historical centre (once the kremlin) until it was demolished by the Bolsheviks in 1932. The current church was spared the fate of the similar same-named cathedral and recently underwent major restoration work to return it to… Read more »

Znamensky Convent

  • 14 Ulitsa Angarskaya

Irkutsk's Znamensky Convent was first mentioned in 1689. Back then its buildings were entirely built out of wood and the first stone buildings only came in the mid-18th century. Construction of the main church - the Our Lady of the Sign Church - began in 1757 and was completed in 1762. It survives to this day. In 1920 the convent was closed and its church followed suit in 1934. However the church was reopened for worship in 1945. The convent was only reopened though in 1994. Since… Read more »