Attractions of Chernihiv region

The stone bridge in the Gothic style is one of the few surviving small architectural forms of the Sokyryntsi palace and park complex.

It was built according to the project of the architect Pavlo Dubrovsky together with the rest of the objects of the complex before 1830. The bridge is three-arched, with pointed arches and four three-tiered pylons.

It has remained in ruins to this day.

The complex of religious and civil buildings of the Greek community of Nizhyn is located to the left of the Saint Nicholas Cathedral.

The Greek churches of All Saints (1782), Saint Michael (1719-1729) and Trinity (1733) are located next to each other here. All three churches have been restored, services are held.

Next to them are the buildings of the former Greek Magistrate (1785), the Oleksandrivskyi College (1817) and the Women's Gymnasium (19th century). Opposite the bazaar is the oldest pharmacy in the city, founded in 1777 by a retired doctor of the Izyum hussar regiment, a Greek from Nizhyn Mykhaylo Lihda (active).

Many other public and residential buildings of the community have survived in the Greek Quarter of Nizhyn, some of which still bear inscriptions in Greek.

The house-museum of the General Judge of the Zaporizhzhian Army Vasyl Kochubey in Baturyn is a rare example of civil architecture of the Ukrainian Baroque era.

This is the only building that has survived since the Baturyn Fortress after the destruction of the Hetman's capital by Moscow troops in November 1708.

The one-storey brick building of the General Court was built in the second half of the 17th century during the time of Hetman Demyan Mnohohrishny. He performed both administrative and housing functions.

From 1700 it was inhabited by Judge General Vasyl Kochubey and her family. His 16-year-old daughter Motrona (Motrya) was in love with her godfather, 58-year-old Hetman Ivan Mazepa, but the father was adamantly against their marriage. Kochubey and his associate Ivan Iskra tried to settle accounts with Mazepa by informing Tsar Peter I of Moscow about the hetman's secret negotiations with King Charles XII of Sweden. The tsarist government extradited the informers to Mazepa, and they were sentenced to death. After the execution of her father, Motrya went to the monastery. The monument, the Alley of Love and 500-year-old oaks in the manor park (there are the remains of the ramparts of the Baturyn fortress) remind of this dramatic story.

The house of Judge Kochubey has housed the Museum of History and Local Lore since 1975, which in 2006 became part of the National Historical and Cultural Reserve "Hetman's Capital". The exposition acquaints with the history of the house and the Kochubey family, and also deeply reveals the theme of Motrya’s and Mazepa's love.

The interiors of the investigation and pre-trial detention rooms with an exposition of instruments of torture are recreated in the basements.

Part of the exhibition is dedicated to the beekeeper, inventor of the hive Petro Prokopovych, who lived in Baturyn.

Kozelets Lyceum No. 1 was established in 1996 on the basis of a secondary school, which in turn was established in 1912 as a Higher Primary School for girls.

Arithmetic, writing, reading, embroidery, cutting and sewing were taught there for 4 years. Teaching was conducted in Russian.

During the First World War, the building was used as a hospital. In 1919, the 1st Congress of Councils of the Kozelets district took place in the premises of the lyceum, at which Soviet power was proclaimed. During the Second World War, the Germans used the premises as a granary.

In 1943, training resumed.

Memorial Museum of Mariya Zankovetska was opened in 1964 in the village of Zanky, in the estate of the Adasovsky family.

It was here in 1854 that the outstanding Ukrainian actress, representative of the luminaries of the Ukrainian theater, Mariya Zankovetska (Adasovska), the first People's Artist of Ukraine, was born. She spent her youth here and returned here many times as an adult.

In the house restored after the fire, where Mariya lived as a child, photos of members of the Adasovsky family and Zankovetska's personal belongings are presented: a casket, a mirror, a handbag, dishes, lace woven by her hands. Of particular interest are her stage costumes, as well as the grand piano presented to the actress by the composer Mykola Lysenko.

An ethnographic collection and an exhibition of medicinal herbs are presented in the adjacent building of the old school. The museum organizes a tea party upon the order of tourist groups.

A monument to Mariya Zankovetska has been installed in the courtyard of the museum.

The memorial to the heroes-defenders of Ukraine was opened in 2023 in the center of Nizhyn city, in the former square named after Hubina, next to the All Saints Cathedral.

The memorial complex in the form of a Cossack cross was built from Ukrainian granite according to the project of architect Zhanna Balanyuk and sculptor Serhiy Oleksienko.

In the center of the composition is a sculpture of the Hero of Ukraine Oleksandr Matsiyevskyi, who went to the Russian-Ukrainian war from Nizhyn and died on December 30, 2022 at the hands of the Russian invaders, boldly throwing into their eyes before being shot: "Glory to Ukraine!" His figure symbolizes the feat of all men and women who defended Ukraine against Russian aggression.

In front of the memorial, an interactive information stand has been installed with information about all citizens of Nizhyn who gave their lives defending Ukraine.

The Mena Museum of Local Lore was founded in 1950 as a museum room of local lore materials on the initiative of teacher Volodymyr Pokotylo and local historian and collector of antiquities Dmytro Kalibaba. In 1968, it received the status of "People's Museum", in 1972 it became the historical department of the Chernihiv Historical Museum. since 1982 - the Mena Museum of Local Lore. In 2011, the museum was named after one of the founders - Volodymyr Pokotylo.

The museum funds include about 17 thousand exhibits, which are located in four halls with a total area of ​​120 square meters. The archaeological collection contains over 2 thousand items, including two bronze hinged neck hryvnias (2nd century BC - 2nd century AD), bronze bracelets and a fibula of the 6th-7th centuries, a fragment of a sword of the 10th century. The museum houses interesting numismatic and ethnographic collections (everyday objects of peasants, landowners, as well as samples of clothing and embroidery of the 18th–19th centuries).

The exposition "Spiritual Shrines of the Mena region" is dedicated to the history of the Domnytskyi and Maksakivskyi monasteries and churches of the Mena region. There are sections dedicated to prominent compatriots and famous figures whose lives and activities are connected with the Mena region.

The environmental and local history organization "Mizhrichynska Pushcha" is the main center for the development of ecotourism in the territory of the Mizhrichynskyi Regional Landscape Park with a center in the village of Otrokhy. It was created in 2013 by the famous ecologist Andriy Sahaydak, who headed the Mizhrichynsky Regional Landscape Park for a long time.

The central estate of the organization is located on the southern outskirts of the village, on the edge of the forest next to the Bondarivske Swamp. Here you can visit the Polissya Forestry Museum, which introduces the traditional life of the Polishchuk people and their occupations: bird breeding, wickerwork, hunting, fishing. The exposition also tells about the history of forest protection.

From the central estate "Mizhrichynska Pushcha" eco-trails begin, laid through the territory of the Mizhrichynsky Regional Landscape Park. One of them leads to the Holy Lake - a swampy reservoir, where a rare snow-white water lily blooms at the end of May. On the ecological trail "Zhuravlyna" you can meet a beaver hut, a partisan hideout, a pagan temple, see traces of wild animals, etc.

In addition to educational excursions, master classes on survival in natural conditions are offered, organization of recreation by the fire on the shore of a forest swamp, etc.

The museum complex of Nizhyn State University named after Mykola Hohol is located in the main university building, built in 1820 for the Nizhyn Gymnasium of Higher Sciences.

This university-type higher education institution was opened in Nizhyn on the initiative of Counts Oleksandr and Illia Bezborodko. Oleksandr Kushelev-Bezborodko, grandson of Illia Bezborodko, became the trustee. In 1821-1828 the writer Mykola Hohol studied here. Graduates of the gymnasium were also a writer-biker Yevhen Hrebinka, artist Andriy Horonovych, patron Vasyl Tarnovsky and others.

In 1909, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Hohol's birth, the Mykola Hohol Museum was founded at the then Nizhyn Historical and Philological Institute.

In addition, the museum complex of Nizhyn University includes the Museum of the History of Nizhyn University, the Museum of Soviet Life "Homo sovieticus", as well as a unique art gallery, in three halls of which are paintings of different eras.

The basis of the art exhibition is paintings of the Renaissance and classical European schools, which were donated to the school by its trustee Oleksandr Kushelev-Bezborodko in 1845 on the occasion of the 25th anniversary. Of particular value is one of the largest in the country collections of paintings by Ukrainian artist Serhiy Shyshko, which he personally donated to the school. 36 paintings represent different stages of creative growth and development of the artist.

The possibility of visiting the museum on weekends must be coordinated with the university administration in advance.

The Chernihiv Literary and Memorial Museum-Reserve of Mykhaylo Kotsyubynsky was opened in 1934 on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the writer's birthday at the initiative of his family - the younger brother of Mykhaylo Khoma Kotsyubynsky became the first director of the institution.

The memorial part of the exposition is located in the one-story wooden house in which Mykhaylo Kotsyubynsky lived from 1898 to 1913. Here he wrote the stories "Fata morgana", "Intermezzo", "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors" and others, hosted many famous representatives of the creative intelligentsia, including composer Mykola Lysenko and writer Borys Hrynchenko.

In the house, the environment that existed during the writer's life is recreated, including a desk with writing utensils and other furniture. The writer's memorial library has more than 1,500 books, including the first editions of his works. Photographs, manuscripts, notebooks, and letters are also presented.

The literary part of the exposition is located in a separate three-story building designed by the outstanding Ukrainian monumentalist artist Anatoly Haydamaka. The decoration of the exposition is the wooden composition "Tree of Life" or "Krynytsia Kotsyubynsky", which permeates all three floors of the building. It has the appearance of a four-sided pillar, on each face of which are carved illustrations of Kotsyubynskyi's works.

Part of the manor is the memorial garden of the Kotsyubynsky family, where more than 200 types of plants are grown, including trees that the writer personally planted. The garden beds are decorated with the writer's favorite flowers: roses, mallows, and poppies. There are also exotic subtropical plants - agaves, which the writer admired in Italy. In the summer, tea parties are held on the veranda of the Kotsyubynsky family's house overlooking the garden.

During the large-scale Russian invasion in 2022, the Chernihiv Literary Memorial Museum-Reserve of Mykhaylo Kotsyubynsky was hit by shelling. The memorial building and 36 museum exhibits were damaged, including Kotsyubynsky's chess pieces, a grand piano, and some furniture. Restoration has been carried out.

The Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin in Kozelets is considered one of the most beautiful Ukrainian Baroque monuments in the country.

This magnificent temple with a magnificent decoration and a beautiful iconostasis was built in 1752-1763 by the order of Nataliya Rozumovska (Rozumikha) to thank God for the happy fate of her sons Oleksiy and Kyrylo, who occupied a high position at the court of Empress Elizaveta.

The authors of the project are considered to be the students of the architect Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli - Ivan Hryhorovych-Barskyi and Andriy Kvasov, but it is possible that Rastrelli himself had something to do with the project. It is possible that the grandiose seven-tiered carved iconostasis 27 meters high was created with his participation.

In the lower part of the temple is the warm church of Adrian and Nataliya - the tomb of the Rozumovskys, where its founder is buried.

The five-domed church impresses with its size and rich decoration, uncharacteristic for the Ukrainian hinterland. According to legend, in clear weather you can see Kyiv and Chernihiv from the 50-meter-high belfry at the same time, but the ascent to the belfry is not allowed recently due to the emergency condition of the stairs.

Nizhyn cucumbers, which made the city of Nizhyn famous, became popular during the reign of Empress Catherine II, who ordered to supply them to the imperial court, which was carried out until 1917.

In Soviet times, the products of the Nizhyn cannery also enjoyed constant popularity due to the special crunch and characteristic taste of local cucumbers, which is explained by the properties of the local soil and a special pickle, the recipe of which, according to legend, was brought to Nizhyn by the Greeks. Currently, Nizhyn pickles are exported to 70 countries around the world. 2

In 2005, a monument to the Nizhyn cucumber was erected in front of the central entrance to the Nizhyn Cannery. The vegetable sculpture is made of green Italian granite. He is depicted lying on a salting barrel standing in a cellar for preserving.

The "Post Office" department of the Nizhyn Museum of Local Lore named after Ivan Spasky was opened in 1986 in a complex of buildings of the post office of the XVIII century, which is almost completely preserved.

Post offices in Kyiv, Nizhyn and Baturyn were established after the decree of Moscow Tsar Oleksiy Mykhaylovych on regular postal services between Moscow and Kyiv in 1669.

In 1787, a private estate built in the center of Nizhyn in the second half of the 18th century was converted into a post office. The complex consisted of a two-story post office building with the apartment of the Nizhyn postmaster and hotel rooms, two symmetrical outbuildings, a stable and a carriage.

At the beginning of the XIX century Nizhyn post office was one of the largest in the Left Bank of Ukraine. Mykhaylo Lomonosov, Hryhoriy Skovoroda, Oleksandr Pushkin, Mykola Hohol, Taras Shevchenko, Marko Vovchok and others stayed at the local hotel.

The exposition of the museum "Post Station" is located in the preserved wing of the station supervisor. The interior of the waiting room has been restored, where you can see a map of the postal tracts of the Russian Empire in 1793, copies of "travelers" by Mykola Hohol (1851) and Taras Shevchenko (1859).

The exhibition also presents a collection of historical postage stamps of Ukraine and Russia, 30 old postcards with photos of Nizhyn streets, a layout of the post office in its original form.

The Literary Memorial Museum of Oleksandr Dovzhenko was opened in the film director's homeland in Sosnytsia.

He was born in 1894 in a large rural family in the village of Vyunishche within the current urban-type settlement of Sosnytsia. From there he went to study at the Hlukhiv Teacher's Institute, then to Zhytomyr and pre-revolutionary Kyiv.

His complex biography included service in the troops of the Ukrainian People's Republic, detention in a Bolshevik concentration camp, joining the Communist Party, Polish captivity, work at the People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs, etc.

Dovzhenko gained worldwide fame as the founder of the Ukrainian National School of Cinematography after the release of his famous films "Zvenyhora" and "Zemlya", the latter of which is now included in the lists of the best films of all times and nations.

Creation of the director's museum in Sosnytsia began in 1957, after his death. Dovzhenko's parental house has been preserved, in which the atmosphere that surrounded him in his youth is reproduced. Collections of his short stories and film stories are presented in the literary exhibition.

An impressive, expressive monument to Dovzhenko (1974, sculptor Anatoliy Fuzhenko, architect Anatoliy Ihnashchenko) was installed in the courtyard of the estate.

The historical and memorial museum of Pavlo Tychyna was opened in the village of Pisky in 1981 in the house where the future poet was born in 1891 and where he spent his childhood years.

Pavlo Tychyna's parental house was recreated according to the drawings of the architect Oleksandr Nozdrin and the memories of the poet's sister (the original burned down during the Second World War). There is a village stove, a kerosene lamp, makitras and other household items.

A monument to the poet was erected in the yard, next to the well.

The museum's exposition continues in the adjacent room: first editions of books, photographs, personal belongings. Several stands tell about the public and political activities of the poet-academic, who was the Minister of Education of Ukraine, a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, and the chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR.