Attractions of Zhytomyr

The People's Museum of the Composer Borys Lyatoshynsky was opened in 2013 in the premises of the Zhytomyr Music School No. 1, which bears the name of this classic of Ukrainian music of the 20th century, who was born in Zhytomyr in 1894.

The exhibition contains materials about the life and work of the artist and his family, which had Polish roots. Personal belongings of the composer, family photos, archival documents are presented.

A separate exhibition is devoted to the history of the Zhytomyr Music School since 1905 and its outstanding graduates.

The monument of Eternal Glory in honor of the soldiers who liberated Zhytomyr was installed on one of the highest points of the city and is visible from afar.

The monument is a tall massive cylindrical column carved from Zhytomyr labradorite, on which a sculptural composition is installed - a soldier of the Soviet Army, a partisan and a patriot woman. A flag flies above them. The sculptural composition is cast from bronze. The names of the units of the Soviet Army, partisan units and units, underground organizations, names of military commanders, partisan commanders, leaders of the party underground are carved on the granite pedestal. The Eternal Flame burns near the monument.

From the foot of the monument there is a wonderful view of the city, its surrounding forests, the dam that forms the Zhytomyr Reservoir.

The two-story baroque mansion on the southern outskirts of Zhytomyr belonged to Zhytomyr notary, lawyer Ivan Filipov.

Originally, the house, built in 1886, was wooden. Filipov reconstructed it in 1903, turning it into a luxurious mansion.

Currently, the building houses 3 state organizations: the Department of Justice, the Department of Culture, and the Palace of Happiness.

Filipov's mansion is an architectural monument of local importance, one of the little-known architectural gems of Zhytomyr.

The Museum of Fire Protection in Zhytomyr is located in the premises of the fire tower, which was built in 1894.

The fire tower is still in operation and is an architectural monument of local importance.

The history of the formation of the fire extinguishing system and fire equipment is presented in the museum, and a movie about the causes of fires is shown on a movie projector.

"Flat house" in Zhytomyr, which is also called "Chimera house" or "Heart-shaped house", earned such a name for its non-standard architectural solution.

The building of the middle of the 19th century is located in the historical center of Zhytomyr, on Victory Square. Its location corresponds to the pre-revolutionary radial planning of the city. Once upon a time, the house was corner, and stood on the sharp corner of the intersection. In order to make the most of the entire plot of land, the architect also had to design the house with an extremely sharp corner. Thus, when viewed from a certain angle, the illusion is created that the house has only a facade with windows, and there are no other walls - the house is flat. At the same time, the two wings of the building made it in a plan resembling the shape of a heart.

Also known are "flat houses" in Odesa and Lviv.

The Holy Dormition Bishop's Cathedral is located in one of the oldest historical districts of Zhytomyr - in Podil, which is why it is also called the Podilska Church.

The church is an architectural monument of local importance.

It belongs to the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate.

The tall and slender Holy Exaltation of the Cross Cathedral is located in the historical heart of Zhytomyr on Castle Hill.

The Byzantine-style church was built in 1900 on the site of the wooden Trinity Church, which had existed since the 17th century.

In the 1930s, the temple was closed by the Soviet authorities, later transferred to the regional museum of local history. In 1987, it housed the exposition of the Museum of Nature, the geological collection of which was founded by Volyn Governor Mykhaylo Chertkov back in the 19th century.

After long discussions regarding the return of the Cathedral of the Exaltation of the Cross to Orthodox believers, in 2011 it was handed over to the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate and consecrated in 2014.

The Lutheran Church in Zhytomyr was built in 1896 near the complex of the Zhytomyr Male Gymnasium.

The land for the construction of the Lutheran church was allocated for the Lutheran community of Zhytomyr by the widow of the German colonist Vilhelm Knaak. The project of the church in the style of modernized Gothic was developed by the architect Arnold Yensh.

The building is made of red brick. The architect managed to achieve excellent plasticity and harmony of architectural forms.

Daniyil Rikhter, the grandfather of the famous pianist Svyatoslav Rikhter, who was born in Zhytomyr in 1915 and lived in a small house next to the church, played the organ in the kirsha.

In Soviet times, a gym was placed in the building.

Since 1996, the church belongs to the "Christmas" Independent Church of Evangelical Baptist Christians. Restoration was carried out, Sunday school was opened. The organ has not yet been restored - it is being replaced by a mock-up.

The Seminary Church of Saint John of Dukla in Zhytomyr is an architectural monument of national importance.

Located close to the central square of the city.

The building in the neoclassical style was built in 1838-1842 as the church of the Lutsk-Zhytomyr Theological Seminary instead of the burned down church of the Franciscan monastery founded in 1763.

Until 1917, a theological seminary was located in the monastery building, and during the Soviet regime - the Military Commissariat.

In 1992, the church of Saint John was returned to the Franciscan fathers, consecrated in 1997. The monastery is active.

Saint Michael's Cathedral in Zhytomyr is considered an architectural landmark of the 19th century, it is one of the oldest stone religious buildings in the city.

It was built at the expense of Zhytomyr merchant Mykhaylo Khabotin, who was later buried under the altar part of the church.

The famous pianist Svyatoslav Richter was baptized here.

Until 1927, Saint Michael's Church operated as a temple of the Ukrainian autocephalous Orthodox community, then it was closed. In Soviet times, the "Znannya" society and a puppet theater were located here.

Today it is an active church of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. In 1991, restoration began. There is an Orthodox Sunday school at the cathedral.

The Roman Catholic parish of Saint Wenceslas was organized in 1907 by the inhabitants of the villages of Kroshnya Cheska and Kroshnya Ruska (present-day Kroshnyansky district of Zhytomyr), mainly Czechs and Poles.

Andrii Arshenevsky allocated the land for the construction of the church. In 1908, the church of St. Wenceslas was built.

During the Soviet rule, the temple was closed, a club was placed in the church building, then a library, and since 1960 - the Zhytomyr food processing plant of the regional consumer cooperative.

The parish of Saint Wenceslas was revived in 2001 thanks to the abbot Father Ludwik Kamilewski, and in 2002 the church was returned to the faithful. The chapel and adjacent buildings were reconstructed, the roof of the main building was covered, the tower and the facade of the church were rebuilt. A commemorative sign in the form of a cross was installed on the landscaped territory of the church on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the parish.

The only museum in Ukraine of the outstanding Ukrainian pianist Svyatoslav Richter was opened in 2015 in the premises of the Zhytomyr Music School No. 2, which also bears the name of Svyatoslav Richter.

Since 1930, the music school has been located in a historic building on the corner of Ivan Franko and Svyatoslav Richter streets, erected in 1904 as a profit building. Composer Oleksandr Bilash and conductor Vadym Hnedash studied here, many cultural figures performed here, including the world-famous pianist Svyatoslav Richter.

For the 100th anniversary of the musician's birthday, the "Svyatoslav Richter Memorial Room" museum was opened, which has been named after the musician since 2018. The exposition presents archival documents, photographs and personal belongings of the musician. Richter's painting works are also exhibited, in particular the oil painting "In the country". The permanent exhibition "The World Through the Eyes of Svyatoslav Richter" is open, where almost 50 photos taken by him personally are presented.

The majestic Transfiguration Cathedral is considered a symbol of the city of Zhytomyr, one of the largest Orthodox churches in Ukraine.

It was built in 1866-1874 by the architect Karl Rahau as the main Orthodox church in Volyn on the site of the Basilian Church. Made in Byzantine-Rus style with characteristic features of Ancient Rus architecture of the 11th-12th centuries. The height of the towers reaches 53 meters.

The interior is richly decorated using local granite and labradorite.

The Zhytomyr Literary and Memorial Museum of Volodymyr Korolenko was opened for the 120th anniversary of the outstanding writer and public figure in the building where he spent his childhood and youth.

Korolenko became famous as an active member of the populist movement and the author of many literary works, the most famous of which are: "The Forest is Roaring", "Blind Musician", "In a Bad Society", "Doomsday", "Speechless", "Children of the Dungeon".

The exposition is arranged in seven halls according to the chronological principle, and includes 10,000 exhibits: personal belongings, lifetime editions of Korolenko and contemporary writers, works of graphics, painting, sculpture, and applied art.

The Zhytomyr Regional Literary Museum is located in an ancient two-story building in the Art Nouveau style, built at the beginning of the 20th century.

The exhibition consists of four sections: French writer Honore de Balzac, Zhytomyr theater artist Ivan Shevchenko, poet-translator Borys Ten and the family of composer Mykhaylo Skorulskyi.