Where to go on clean ponds. Chistye Prudy and Chistoprudny Boulevard. Modernity of Chistye Prudy Park
Address: Chistoprudny Boulevard
How to get to Chistye Prudy: st. Metro Chistye Prudy
Chistye Prudy, or Chisty Pond - now this name is given not only to the reservoir, but also to the entire nearby park area, as well as the area. If we consider the relief map of the area on which Chistye Prudy are located, we can see that the top of a gentle hill is located here. Often it was in such places that there were swamps from which streams or small rivers flowed. In the case of Chistye Prudy, this was the case - the streams formed the Rachka River, which was a tributary of the Yauza.
During the growth of Moscow, this place was gradually drained and populated. When at the end of the 16th century the architect F.S. On the site of ancient wooden fortifications, the wall of the White City was built by a horse, it cut Rachka. It was impossible to build houses in front of the wall in the lowland, and a pond was formed in this lowland at the turn of the 16th-17th centuries.
In the beginning it was Pogany Pond. There are three versions of the origin of this name. According to one of them, the Balts-Gentiles worshiped their pagan gods in this area. Indeed, in ancient times, the word "filthy" (from the Latin "paganus" - pagan) was not called something bad or dirty, it was how the pagans were designated. Another interpretation of the name of the pond comes from an ancient legend that takes us to the origins of Moscow. On the site of the future city, there used to be the village of the boyar Stepan Kuchka, who did not respectfully receive Prince Yuri Dolgoruky. The enraged prince ordered the Kuchka to be killed, and his body to be drowned in a pond, after which the pond received the nickname Pogany. It is known that a real tragedy is connected with this place. In July 1570, on the orders of Ivan the Terrible, 120 boyars and servicemen, whom the tsar accused of treason, were brutally executed after painful torture.
But the generally accepted option is that the Pogany pond began to be called, because merchants from nearby butcher shops and slaughterhouses, located along Myasnitskaya Street, dumped waste into it. In the heat, fetid odors hung over the pond, and the place was rather unpleasant. At the end of the 17th century, the mansion near the pond was acquired by the favorite and associate of Emperor Peter I, Prince Menshikov. Alexander Menshikov could not tolerate such a neighborhood near his house. He cleared the ponds and forbade them to pollute in the future. Soon the butchers were forced out of this area of Moscow, because. Myasnitskaya ran to the palace village of Preobrazhensky and to the German settlement (Lefortovo), where Peter I and his entourage often traveled. Since that time, the ponds have been called Clean. Now, on the site of the once luxurious Menshikov estate, there is the Main Post Office, built in 1912.
In the past, the ponds were a popular recreational destination at any time of the year. In winter, people went skating here, and in summer - boating. Such well-known athletes of the past as the world champion of 1910-1911 trained on the ice of Chistye Pruda. Nikolai Strunnikov and European champion Vasily Ippolitov, as well as Yakov Melnikov.
Back in 1820, Chistoprudny Boulevard was built - the second longest after Tverskoy. The boulevard is 822 meters long, a quiet side road separated from the busy main road by a lawn. The inhabitants of Chistoprudny Boulevard belonged to the most diverse social strata, which led to the heterogeneity of its development. On the inner side of the street, the Moscow nobility built their luxurious mansions, and on the outer side - wealthy burghers and merchants, middle-class yard owners.
In 1958, a boat station was closed at Chistye Prudy, in 1960 the banks were reinforced with stones, and in 1966 with concrete. Now only swans and ducks swim on the surface of the pond, which are relocated for the winter to "winter apartments" equipped near the Novodevichy Convent. During the years of Soviet power, Chistoprudny Boulevard bypassed radical transformations, and most of the buildings here belong to the late 19th and early 20th centuries. One of the main architectural and cultural attractions of the boulevard is the building at number 19-a. The mansion was built for the cinema in 1912-1914 by the architect R.I. Klein for the Colosseum cinema, and now it houses the famous Moscow drama theater Sovremennik.
In the 90s of the 20th century, Chistye Prudy acquired a reputation as a cult party place. Fans of informal music gathered here: rockers, punks, as well as bohemia, informals. Chistye Prudy often became a venue for various rallies and celebrations of sports victories. Many agree to meet near the monument to Griboedov, located in the park on Chistye Prudy. In 1990, the metro station formerly known as Kirovskaya was renamed Chistye Prudy. In winter, the pond serves as a spontaneous skating rink for skaters. Now the pond is fed from the water supply, and the Rachka River no longer exists.
There are many places in Moscow that are perceived ambiguously. One of them is Chistye Prudy. In the middle of the wide Chistoprudny Boulevard, there is a clear pond, surrounded by old lindens, chestnuts, well-groomed bushes and neat lawns. Informal youth, fans of some football teams, just fans of hanging out, singing along with the guitar and laughing out loud like to gather here. The pond is surrounded by ancient quarters and a few modern buildings that fit seamlessly into the urban landscape. Above the pond and the small park adjacent to it, the energy of the old Moscow place reigns, filled with a bright and unique history.
The emergence of the pond dates back to the end of the 16th century. Moscow grew, new squares were built up and populated. The buildings erected at that time cut the small river Rachka, which previously flowed in the area of the pond. As a result, part of the river simply dried up. And the swampy part of the area, left by the former river and fed by numerous streams, gradually formed a pond.
It was originally called Pogany. Not far from it was (and is now in the same place) Myasnitskaya street. The butchers who lived on it, who fed the whole of Moscow with meat, were engaged in slaughtering and butchering the carcasses of livestock. They dumped all the waste from their activities into the pond. The water there was always a dirty brown color and exuded a fetid smell, which was especially unbearable in the summer heat. The townspeople tried to avoid this place.
Everything changed during the time of Peter I, when his associate Alexander Menshikov acquired a luxurious mansion not far from Pogany Pond. The view of the pond and the stinking smell coming from it did not please the royal favorite, and he ordered to clear the pond. After the bottom and banks of the reservoir were cleaned, Menshikov forbade the use of the pond for dumping waste from Myasnitskaya Street, and the pond itself was renamed Chistye Prudy (although there was always one pond).
Over time, Chistye Prudy became a place of rest for the townspeople. In the summer it was possible to go boating and swimming here, in the winter ice skating was arranged. From the middle of the 20th century, boating was banned, and swans and ducks settled on the calm surface of the pond, whose offspring still live there.
Now Chistye Prudy is called not only the reservoir itself, but also the park area adjacent to it. The nearby metro station bears the same name. This place, like no other, keeps the memory of the old days.
Despite the seeming tranquility, this place keeps the memory of the terrible events of history that it witnessed. It was here that during the time of Ivan the Terrible, more than 100 boyars, accused of treason, suffered a painful death. This happened on the banks of the Rachka River, long before the appearance of the pond. Even earlier, on the banks of the Rachka, there was an ancient temple of pagans, which was destroyed during the time of Christianity. Like any other, this temple possessed powerful power and its destroyers, who threw the sacred attributes of pagan worship into the water of Rachka and set fire to everything that burned, were severely punished for their deeds.
All these events could not but leave a trace on the long-suffering land of this place. Subtle natures feel anxiety, fear here, they try not to linger in the vicinity of the pond. In addition, natural water sources have dried up. Now the pond is being filled with tap water, which also does not have the best effect on the energy emitted by this place.
But for those who just want to be near the water and enjoy the beautiful view, Chistye Prudy is a real oasis in the center of a noisy metropolis.
Today we offer a walk around Chistye Pond —>
It’s worth starting with the fact that Igor Talkov can no doubt be called the main popularizer of Chistye Prudy with a famous song that was included in the Song of the Year program in 1987 and brought wide popularity to the singer himself.
Let's walk around the pond and see the details.
The first "detail" is typical not only for Chistye Prudy, but for many parks and boulevards of Moscow as a whole.
A utility worker blows leaves with a Stihl blower (like this one).
According to the latest statistical studies, such blowers are considered by residents of Moscow to be perhaps the most senseless waste of budget money.
On Chistoprudny Boulevard there is a monument to Abai Kunanbaev (1845-1904) - the great Kazakh poet, educator and popularizer of Russian and European culture in Kazakhstan.
The monument was opened on April 4, 2006, and was fully funded by the Kazakh side, whose embassy is located here, on Chistoprudny Boulevard.
The decision to install the monument was made at the very top - after the meeting of Presidents Putin and Nazarbayev in Moscow in January 2005.
More interesting is the following detail: next to the monument are two Polovtsian idols.
Paganism thus returned to Chistye Prudy.
Brief historical background: Chistye Prudy got its name only after Aleksashka Menshikov, an associate of Peter the Great, settled here, who ordered to ennoble the area and clean out the cluttered and dirty ponds. Before that, the ponds were called Pogany, according to one version, because the Myasnitskaya Sloboda was nearby and all the fetid drains flowed into the pond. However, according to another version, there were pagan temples here since ancient times (is it because something metaphysical always gathers crowds of “Gothic” youth here ?!) and all the same idols stood. The word "filthy" in Rus' was directly applied to the pagans. The old Indo-European root can still be seen in other languages: Latin "paganus", Eng. pagan, ital. and Spanish pagano, Ukrainian "bastard".
Opposite the monument, a small artificial pond was made, in the middle of which stands a statue of a heron. True, many stubbornly call it a crane, and unknown hooligans, for persuasiveness, constantly paint on and renovate the corresponding place, since the water in the "puddle" is knee-deep and it is not difficult to get to the "crane".
Multifunctional complex "White Swan": restaurant, fitness club, etc.
In January 1966, a glass cafe typical of the 1960s was built on this site, and in 1982, the popular Indian restaurant Jaltarang (singing water) in Moscow was located in the rebuilt building. In the late 1980s, the restaurant went out of business, and in the mid-1990s, it turned into what it has become.
Restaurant "Shater" (according to reviews, very mediocre with inflated prices) has a real Venetian gondola on the pond.
There is bad weather in the photo, so the gondola stands idle, and on good days, the guests of the restaurant ride on it a real Tajik dressed as a gondolier with a straw hat and a striped T-shirt. An enchanting spectacle!
At the end of the pond you can see the real decoration of Moscow - the profitable house of the Trinity Church on Gryazeh (the church itself is located around the corner on Pokrovka).
The house was built in 1908-1909. and is richly decorated with the most beautiful bas-reliefs based on sketches by the artist S.I. Vashkov, who was inspired by the bas-reliefs of the Dmitrovsky Cathedral in Vladimir.
The antique shop located on the first floor tried to repeat the style in its porch.
This house also has Soviet symbols - the badge of honor of OSOAVIAKHIM.
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On the opposite side of the pond, there is another noteworthy house for looking at, which belonged to the grain merchant Rakhmanov.
The house was built in 1898-1899. and became one of the first Moscow houses in the Art Nouveau style.
The house is decorated with elegant mascarons
The main business of the owner of the house - the trade in bread - is directly reflected in the decor of the building: ears of corn are everywhere.
The trees of the opposite alley of the pond are hung with birdhouses.
In the spring of 2008, during a promotion, they were hung up by "stars" of various sizes.
Another attraction of Chistye Prudy is the Sovremennik Theatre.
From 1914 to 1970 the cinema "Coliseum" was located here, and in 1974, after reconstruction, the troupe of the theater moved into the building.
The theater troupe looks at Chistye Prudy from a large banner to the left of the main entrance.
Here we again go to the "White Swan" and the monument to Abai and finish our short walk.
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Email Show on the mapEveryone who comes to Chistye Prudy is surprised: why is it in the plural, if the pond is just one? The explanation is quite logical: one of the ponds was filled up. The same situation was in the case of the Patriarch's Ponds: the name also retained the plural.
Once upon a time there were swamps in this place, but they were gradually drained. The Rachka River, which flowed here, was crossed by the walls of the White City, and a pond formed near the walls. At first it was called Poganym, there are several versions of this name. Many believe that it comes from the word paganus, which means "pagan". This story is connected with the boyar Kuchka, who was not respectful enough to the founder of Moscow, Yuri Dolgoruky, for which he was first killed and then drowned in a pond. A historically confirmed fact: there were executions on the site of Chistye Prudy, but during the time of Ivan the Terrible. By order of the king, 120 boyars were cruelly tortured and executed at this place.
But the most common version is related to the fact that there used to be meat rows near Pogany Pond. All of Moscow came to the slaughterhouses (by the way, they were located on the street with a telling name - Myasnitskaya). When cutting meat, unnecessary parts that were not for sale were thrown directly into the reservoir by butchers. This fact could not but anger Prince Menshikov, who lived nearby. The prince ordered the ponds to be cleaned. After that, the name "nasty" disappeared, and the ponds became Clean.
In 1911, it was on the ice of Chistye Prudy that the world champions in figure skating trained. By 1960, the pond was equipped, a boat station was opened. In winter, people go skating here, and closer to summer, representatives of informal subcultures gather in a small area near the monument to Griboyedov.
Chistoprudny Boulevard often hosts open-air photo exhibitions. By the way, the Annushka tram runs along it. There is an aquarium nearby.
Address: Moscow, Chistye Prudy (m. Turgenevskaya, Chistye Prudy, Sretensky Boulevard)
If you have a day off, do not rush to get into the car and go to Auchan. Summer is the best time for walking! And if, like almost any Muscovite, you do not know the city at all, then the time has come to fix it!
Today we will walk from the Chistye Prudy metro station not along the boulevard (which would be too obvious), but along the lanes that hide a lot of beautiful and interesting things: Leonardo DiCaprio, the most delicious ice cream in Moscow, a dovecote from Soviet books and much more. Don't forget to buy a bottle of water in advance and hit the road!
Our first landmark is McDonald's. We pass by and walk along Myasnitskaya Street. We turn into Gusyatnikov Lane, and then to Ogorodnaya Sloboda. It is here, in a small square between houses 2 and 6, that an unusual monument stands. The locals have long nicknamed him "Leonardo DiCaprio". Like it or not - you decide. Of course, it is hard to imagine that the city authorities, out of love for the film "Titanic", would immortalize a Hollywood actor in the center of Moscow. In fact, this is a monument to the young Lenin, or rather "Lenin the gymnasium student." A unique image of Ilyich, nevertheless, people of the older generation easily recognize him - it looks like a face on Soviet badges.
And for the youth, the monument was signed with paint.
Then we go to Bolshoi Kharitonievsky Lane. Here, among the fences and trees, the estate of the Volkov-Yusupovs is hidden. One of the buildings - the oldest in the complex - belongs to the 17th century. It is easy to identify: a stone building, massive white walls, small windows. In front of the house there is a small garden, reminiscent of the fact that once there were forests. It was from here that Ivan the Terrible and the boyars Volkov-Yusupov began hunting, following longer to Sokolniki.
And the white stone building is also famous for the fact that little Pushkin once lived in it with his parents. It is easy to imagine him running down the porch into the garden.
In the courtyard of the estate, where the second building of the Volkov-Usupov estate stands (house 21, building 4), fruit trees grow: cherries and pears. In July, you can already try these cherries, but you have to wait for the pears. Knowledgeable Muscovites often gather tree fruits here, and now you are privy to this secret.
We go, paying attention to the old houses, to the street. Makarenko. We are interested in house eight. Here is a unique Moscow courtyard: with an apple orchard, a playground, a real dovecote and a small zoo where peacocks and black swans live. This whole courtyard was arranged by one person - a local resident Eldar, who lived on Chistye for four decades. He defended the apple orchard from people who wanted to build a parking lot in its place. If you are polite and say hello, and not just walk by, then Eldar will definitely tell the story of the court, allow you to go to the swans and feed them grass, and show the way to the apple trees.
You should definitely come here with your child! Everyone watched the Moscow zoo, but to see a real menagerie in an ordinary Moscow courtyard is an amazing experience!
While we were walking, you probably had a desire to eat. No need to look for "Chocolate Girl" or "Coffee House". While you are in the area, you should definitely try the most delicious ice cream in Moscow!
They make it in the cultural center "Pokrovsky Gates" (Pokrovka St., 27, entrance from the yard), or rather, in the cafe "Tea Height". The menu has more than 40 types of tea ice cream according to original recipes. Ice cream is called so because it is made on the basis of tea. Ice cream with Crimean rose, with cloudberries, with cheese, with Pu-erh tea is worth attention. Each taste is an unforgettable gastronomic experience. Then you will recommend tea ice cream to all your friends!
Ice cream is brought slowly, so while waiting for it, you can look into the bookstore of the cultural center. On its shelves are not only art publications, but also books on philosophy, history, culture. The large children's section is conveniently decorated: each cabinet is signed: from 2 to 5, from 6 to 10, and so on, up to 16 years. It is worth paying special attention to the products of the Samokat publishing house: it prints smart children's books (authors: Annika Thor, Ulf Stark, Marie-Aude Muray and many others).
