Uzhhorod

The Horyanska Rotunda (Church of Saint Anna) in Uzhhorod is the oldest temple in Transcarpathia, a unique monument of Romano-Byzantine architecture, in which experts see features of Great Moravian architecture.

The most probable time of construction is considered to be the 13th century, but there are also earlier datings - up to the 10th century. The rotunda temple in Horyany is made in the shape of a hexagon with powerful walls 2-2.5 meters thick and narrow windows, made of bricks similar to the ancient Rus plinth. Probably, the church of Saint  Anna was the chapel of the fortified castle and performed defensive functions.

According to legend, the Horyanska Rotunda was built by Princess Gragissa, who owned the Horyansky Castle in the 13th century. When the castle was captured by the tycoon Matush Chuck Trenchynsky, escaping from dishonor, Gragissa went forever to the castle dungeons, where her soul still awaits release.

In the 15th century, the nave of the Nicholas Church was attached to the rotunda.

The frescoes created in 1360-1370 by Italian masters of the Giotto school have been preserved inside the Horyanska Rotunda. On the eastern wall of the nave there are paintings of the 15th century, executed in the "sal secco" technique in the manner of the Tyrolean and Czech schools of painting.

The oldest sakura alley in Uzhhorod stretches along Brashchaykiv Street from Pushkina Square on Nezalezhnosti Embankment to the intersection with Ferentsa Rakotsi Street. This is the most popular tourist location in the city during the cherry blossoms in the second half of April.

Sakura is recognized as a tourist card of Uzhhorod. The ornamental Japanese cherry was brought here in 1923 from Vienna, and now it grows all over the city. But the first sakura alley was planted along Braschaykiv Street and on the adjacent streets - in the so-called Czech quarters, which were built in the 1920s in the style of interwar modernism. In the spring, hundreds of sakura trees bloom here in an incredibly lush pink and white color. This fascinating sight attracts thousands of tourists to Uzhhorod every year.

New sakura alleys in Uzhhorod were planted in 2009-2011 on the opposite bank of the Uzh River, on the Slovyanska, Kyivska and Pravoslavna embankments.

Almost at the same time as cherry blossoms, magnolias bloom, flowers of Japanese quince and Nedzvetskyi, Florida and Chinese apple trees bloom.

Photo museum cafe "OttoFoto" was opened in Uzhhorod in 2023 by the wife of the famous Uzhhorod collector Attila Runyanin Kseniya. The collection was formed and replenished for about 7 years and now includes more than half a thousand different cameras and more.

About three hundred cameras, two motorcycles and about one hundred rarities are presented in the cafe-photo museum "OttoFoto". The exposition of the cafe mainly consists of cameras of Soviet, European and American production since 1920. There are also other old things here: a gramophone, a Soviet radio, a landline telephone that was used in the last century, various antiques.

Photo exhibitions, workshops and creative meetings can be held in the coffee shop.

"OttoFoto" is located in the central part of the city, not far from Koryatovycha Square.

The museum of the Transcarpathian artist Andriy Kotska was opened in the Uzhhorod house where he had lived since 1945.

The exposition is based on materials collected by the artist's sister Anna. In his studio some of Kotska's works are presented - portraits and landscapes of the post-war period.

Other works of the master can be found in the memorial part of the museum, where the living conditions of the house are preserved.

The garden around the house grows fruit trees and shrubs, as well as rare ornamental species of European and local flora.

Andriy Kotska Memorial House-Museum is a branch of the Transcarpathian Regional Art Museum named after Yosyp Bokshay.

The Archaeological Museum named after Professor Eduard Balahuri is located on the first floor of the rectorate building of the Uzhhorod National University.

It was founded in 2004 on the basis of the archaeological laboratory of the History Faculty of UzhNU. It bears the name of historian, archaeologist, professor of Uzhhorod University Eduard Balahuri, on whose initiative the first museum was opened at the university in 1984, which became the predecessor of the current one.

The exhibition presents historical and cultural values from the Paleolithic to the late Middle Ages, which were collected by the archeological expedition of UzhNU during the decades.

The most interesting exhibits come from the excavations of the Dacian hillfort near the village of Mala Kopania, the model of which can be seen in the exposition. Among them are samples of Dacian pottery, tools, weapons, jewelry, coins, as well as cult objects, including a ritual ram vessel and a Dacian burial urn.

The Museum of History of the Uzhhorod National University is located in a separate exhibition hall, which presents the achievements of higher education in Transcarpathia, from the founding of the Jesuit collegium in the 17th century to the modern achievements of UzhNU.