Attractions of Kharkiv

The Scientific and Educational Museum of Sexual Cultures of the World was established in 1999 by the staff of the Department of Sexology and Medical Psychology of the Kharkiv Medical Academy.

The first museum of its kind in the post-Soviet space covers the sexual cultures of 12 countries. The exhibition presents paintings by ancient Egyptian artists, ancient Chinese drawings, ancient statuettes, reproductions of paintings by Picasso, Manet and other artists, modern drawings and photographs.

Part of the exhibition is devoted to the sexual education of children and adolescents. Particular attention is paid to the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, especially AIDS.

The materials of the museum are selected in accordance with the requirements of the programs of educational institutions. There is a sex shop at the museum.

The area arose in 1660-1662, when a fortification was built here, adjacent to the Kharkiv fortress.

After some time, the center of the fortification became a large shopping area called Narodna. At the corner of the square and Universitetska Street in the second half of the 18th century, there was a post office (now on this site is a post office building), next to which a stone verst pillar with inscriptions indicating the distances from Kharkiv to Moscow and neighboring provincial cities was installed. Decrees were read near the pillar and public punishments were carried out, so the square was also called Lobna.

In the middle of the 19th century, the square was called Pavlivska in honor of the merchant Pavlov, who opened the first store with fixed prices for goods. Later, the large building of the insurance company "Russia" (1910-1915, architect Mykola Verovkin) and the City Merchant Bank (1913, architects Mykola Vasylyev and Oleksandr Rzhepishevsky) were built, on the two upper floors of which the Astoria hotel was located.

During the Second World War, the building was destroyed, but then restored in its original form.

On the night of August 27, 2022, during the Russian-Ukrainian war, the Russians launched a missile attack on Pavlivska Square in Kharkiv. The historical building of 1912 was damaged, the windows and doors of the building were blown out by the blast wave.

The Church of Peter and Paul was founded in 1866 in the suburb of Kharkiv - on Zhuravlivka (now it is Taras Shevchenko Street with the surrounding area).

The stone building was laid in 1871, the construction was completed in 1875. The Church of Peter and Paul was built in the Rus-Byzantine style according to the project of architects Fedir Danilov and Vasyl Nebolsyn. The temple is single-domed, with three thrones. A women's church and parish school operated under him. Even during the times of persecution and Hitler's occupation, the church did not stop working.

By the 130th anniversary, the Peter and Paul Church was restored, and the Basil the Great Sunday School was opened, where parishioners are taught the basics of doctrine and the art of church singing.

The Museum of Photo Illusions opened in 2017 in the very center of Kharkiv.

There are 28 photo zones with different subjects for visitors. Carefully thought out locations allow you to take the most incredible photos due to the game of perception, scale and perspective.

The museum employs a photographer who can provide his services for an additional fee - shooting on professional equipment, retouching and processing the resulting images.

Terraced Pokrovsky Square (architects Heorhiy Vehman, Ihor Zhylkin, Mykhaylo Lutsky, Hanna Mayak, 1951-1952), located on Sobornyi descent, adjacent to University Street.

Previously, the buildings of the Old Passage, which belonged to the merchant Pashchenko-Tryapkin, were located on this place, but were destroyed during the occupation of Kharkiv by German-fascist troops. In 1951, on the site of the ruins, a terraced square with stairs, a fountain and a cascade was built using the method of folk construction. From the upper terrace, you can admire a wonderful panorama of the Zalopanska part of the city, Serhiyiyivsky Maidan and the Annunciation Cathedral.

A monument to Hryhoriy Skovoroda (architect Yuriy Shkodovsky, sculptor Ivan Kavaleridze) was installed on the site of the square. The territory of the former Kharkiv fortress begins a few tens of meters from the monument.

In 2009, the square was reconstructed and handed over to the Holy Intercession Men's Monastery. An Orthodox cross is placed at the top of the fountain, the water in the fountain is consecrated.

The first Saint Nicholas Church in the village of Zhihor (now a suburb of Kharkiv) was built in 1747 at the expense of Colonel Andriy Shcherbinin.

The church was made of wood and soon burned down. The current stone church of Nicholas the Wonderworker with one throne was started to be built in 1890 at the expense of the parishioners. A church and parish school operated at the temple. After the revolution, the temple was closed and opened several times.

Today, the church has been completely restored. Inside, the walls are extremely beautifully painted. The church is functioning, and a church-parochial school has been opened again.

The first wooden church of Nicholas the Wonderworker in Hryhorivka (a suburb of Kharkiv) was built in 1765.

In 1821, according to the project of the architect Yevhen Vasylyev, on the site of the former church, a single-domed Nicholas Church with a red brick bell tower in the shape of a cross was built at the expense of Colonel Oleksandr Norov.

In 1938, during the persecution of the church, Deacon Filipp (Ordynets) was arrested and shot. In our time, he is included among the holy new martyrs of the Slobidsky region.

From 1960 to 1989, the Saint Nicholas Church was closed. In 1989, the surviving remains of the church were handed over to the Orthodox community of the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate.

The Church in the name of the holy prince Oleksandr Nevsky in Kharkiv was built in 1830 at the Kharkiv Psychiatric Hospital, better known as Saburova dacha.

The small church could not accommodate all the parishioners, and in 1904, 20 thousand rubles were allocated from the state treasury for the construction of a new church. The project was executed by the architect Mykhaylo Lovtsov, who himself supervised the construction. In 1907. construction, decoration and painting of the temple were completed. The icons of the one-tier carved iconostasis were painted on zinc. The Oleksandr Nevsky Church was richly decorated with stucco, which is why it was considered one of the most elegant in the city.

In 1920, the church was closed and used for various services (club, hospital archive, agitation point, etc.). Reopened in 1990, now completely restored.

The church in honor of the holy great martyr and healer Panteleymon was founded in 1882.

Construction under the direction of the architect Fedir Danylov was carried out quickly - already in 1883 the walls, roof and bell tower were ready. The first religious services began in 1885. The temple is made in the Rus-Byzantine style.

In 1897-1818, it was reconstructed by the famous architect Mykhaylo Lovtsov, the author of the Annunciation Cathedral and Dmitrivska Church. He decorated the facade with decorative details that gave the church a festive look.

In 1930, the temple was closed, the tower with a dome, decorative towers were dismantled. A cross was torn from the bell tower. The temple was returned to believers in 1989. Restoration work was completed in 1999.

Kharkiv Passenger Railway Station (South Railway Station) is the main passenger station of the Kharkiv Railway .

The first Kharkiv railway station was laid in 1868 on the Arkhiyereyska Levada near Kholodna Hill. In addition to this building, designed by the architect Andriy Ton, a house for the road manager and other residential and commercial buildings were built on Pryvokzalna Square.

The first train arrived in Kharkiv on May 22, 1869, and regular traffic on the Kursk-Kharkiv-Azov railway was soon opened. By the end of the 19th century, the intensity of freight and passenger traffic had increased significantly, and therefore the station building had to be expanded: a new building was added to it on the south side, and then the old premises were reconstructed according to the project of architect Serhiy Zahoskin. The Kharkiv railway station became one of the largest in the Russian Empire. One of the largest buildings of pre-revolutionary Kharkiv was built nearby - the building of the Administration of Southern Railways.

In 1952, the construction of a new building in the style of the "Stalin empire" was completed on the site of the station destroyed during the Second World War. Ten massive columns of white Inkerman stone support the portico, flanked by two towers. On the portico - sculptural groups, stucco decorations. The height of the central hall is 26 meters. All platforms are connected to the station by underground tunnels.

In 2003, the last reconstruction was completed, as a result of which the station received modern equipment.

A monument to father Fedir from "12 chairs" is installed on platform No. 1.

The monument to Taras Shevchenko in Kharkiv is considered the best of all the existing monuments to the poet.

The project was developed by the sculptor Matviy Manizer. According to the author's plan, the multi-figure sculptural group personifies the struggle of the people for freedom sung by Kobzar. Actors of Kharkiv theater "Berezil" posed for the sculptor.

The grand opening took place on March 24, 1935. At that time, it was the largest bronze composition in the USSR (total height - 16 meters, height of the poet's figure - 5.5 meters).

Some student traditions of students of Kharkiv University are connected with the monument.

The church in honor of the Three Saints - Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom was built in 1915 on the initiative of the head of the City Merchant Society, merchant of the first guild Hryhoriy Holdberh, who had brothers Vasyl and Ivan (probably the choice of the name of the church is connected with this).

The project of the church in the form of a Moscow pentacle with a tent bell tower was developed by the authoritative Kharkiv architect, professor of the Institute of Technology, Mykhaylo Lovtsov, taking as a basis the volume-planning and constructive decision of the church in the St. Petersburg yard of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. The foundation of the church took place in 1906, the construction took 9 years.

Highly artistic interiors are of particular value. The painting was done by St. Petersburg artist Oleksiy Sokol. The original iconostasis was made in Italy according to the drawings of Volodymyr Pokrovsky.

After 1917, the Three Saints Church was turned into a warehouse, but it was reopened in 1925.

The first Kharkiv museum of motor transport "Auto relic" opened in 2010, but it has its history since 1987, when the first retro car GAZ-12 "ZIM" was purchased in the collection.

To date, more than 70 vehicles have been purchased and restored. The museum exposition presents: "Moskvich" 400 (1948), ZAZ 965 (1964), ZAZ 965A (1967), "Volga" GAZ-21 US (1964), GAZ-67B (1943) .).), GAZ-12 WINTER (1952), GAZ M-20 "Victory" (1955) and others.

There are more than 56 vehicles in the museum's storage facilities, which are awaiting the start of restoration work.

The museum is located in the garage cooperative "Chayka" on the northern outskirts of Kharkiv (Zhukovsky village).