Attractions of Odesa district

The monument to Empress Catherine II and her associates (Platon Zubov, Hryhoriy Potomkin, Frants de Volan, Yosyp Derybas) was erected for the 100th anniversary of the Odesa.

In Soviet times, it was replaced by a monument to the Potemkinites.

The revival of the monument in 2007 was accompanied by protests by Odesa national patriots who opposed the perpetuation of the memory of the oppressor who eliminated Ukraine's independence.

On December 28, 2022, during the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, by the decision of the Odesa City Council, the monument to Catherine was dismantled and transferred to the Odesa Art Museum.

The Odesa funicular, located next to the Potomkinski Stairs, was created in 1902 according to the project of Mykola Pyatnytskyi.

This is the first funicular in Ukraine. At first, wagons with gear transmission, which were issued from Paris, worked here. Nowadays, there are modern inclined elevators, that is, the cabins move independently of each other along separate paths.

The upper station of the Odesa funicular is located on Prymorsky Boulevard, next to the Duke monument. There is a souvenir shop in the pavilion. A cafe is open in the premises of the lower station.

The Odesa Museum of History and Local Lore is located in the former palace of industrialist Oleksandr Novikov, built in 1876 according to the project of architect Feliks Honsiorovsky. Late Italian Renaissance forms are used in the architecture.

After the Soviet-Ukrainian war at the beginning of the 20th century, a club, a library, party courses, etc. were located in "Novikov's house".

The first museum exposition about the defense of Odessa was placed here in 1948. And in 1956, the Odesa State Historical and Local Lore Museum was opened.

Now the collection of the museum has about 120 thousand exhibits. The basis of the exposition is made up of documents, printed publications, works of applied and visual arts, numismatic collections, weapons of the XVII-XIX centuries from the collections of the Museum of the Odesa Society of History and Antiquities, the Book Museum, the Museum of Old Odessa and others.

The interior of the ceremonial office of the governor-general of the beginning of the 19th century has been recreated.

The courtyard of the museum with a miniature park and an elegant fountain "Grot" is especially interesting.

The Odesa Literary Museum is one of the most visited museums in Odesa located in the palace of the XIX century (architect Luyi Sezar Otton), which belonged to Prince Dmytro Haharin.

In the second half of the century Haharin transferred the palace to the city, in 1899-1903 there were meetings of the Literary and Artistic Society. Chic interiors have been preserved.

The Odesa Literary Museum was founded in 1977. Each of the 20 halls reflects the artistic image of the decade to which it is dedicated.

In the museum yard there is a garden of sculptures with flower beds, a fountain, medieval statues and modern humorous bronze miniature monuments in honor of the heroes of Odesa folklore: Eternal Jew Rabynovych, Future Genius, Mykhaylo Zhvanetskyi, Denim Dyuk, Kostya-sailor and more.

RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN WAR

On the night of July 20, 2023, during the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the building of the Odesa Literary Museum suffered significant damage as a result of a massive missile attack on Odesa by the Russian army. The blast wave damaged most of the windows, the interiors of the museum were damaged, the ceiling in two halls collapsed, and the exhibits were damaged.

In December 2024, UNESCO included the Literary Museum in Odesa on the International List of Cultural Properties under Enhanced Protection.

The Odesa Municipal Museum of Personal Collections was created on the basis of personal collections of works of art by the famous Soviet climber Oleksandr Bleschunov.

A meeting of the Odesa intelligentsia was held in his communal apartment, whose representatives helped him to collect a collection of paintings and antiques.

In 1989, the collector donated his collections to the city and until his death in 1991 remained head of the museum.

The exposition presents the exhibitions "Russian Antiquities", "Buddhist East", "Western Europe", "Muslim East", "Odesa woman" and others.

The artistic treasures of Odesa are preserved and popularized by the Odesa National Art Museum (OFAM).

The museum has an outstanding collection of all types of fine art: painting, graphics, sculpture, decorative and applied arts, icon painting by Ukrainian and Russian masters from the 16th century to the present day, numbering more than 10 thousand original works.

The Odessa Art Museum is located in the ancient Potocki-Naryshkin Palace, which was built in 1823-1826 by Countess Olha Potocka (married to Naryshkin), daughter of Stanislav and Sofiya Potocki. The construction was supervised by the Italian architect Franchesko Boffo. This is a typical noble estate in the style of classicism with a two-story central building and side wings, which are connected by round galleries. The decoration of the ceiling, marble and parquet floors with inlay has been preserved. In the basement of the building there is an artificial cave with a grotto, which is connected by underground passages with the catacombs of Odesa (visit only accompanied by a guide).

In 1888 the palace was bought by Odesa Mayor Hryhoriy Marazli, and in 1899 on the initiative of the Odesa Society of Fine Arts it opened the City Museum of Fine Arts, which still functions as the Odesa National Art Museum.

The exhibition presents works by Vasyl Tropinin, Taras Shevchenko, Ivan Aivazovskyi, Oleksiy Savrasov, Ivan Shishkin, Illya Repin, Mykola Pymonenko, Oleksandr Murashko, Arkhyp Kuyindzhi, Mykhaylo Vrubel, Mykola Rerikh, Oleksandr Benua, Zinayida Serebryakova. Vasyl Kandynsky's "Sunlit Street" is considered a world-class masterpiece.

On the evening of November 5, 2023, Russia launched a massive missile attack on the historic center of Odesa. As a result of the Onyx and Iskander-M missiles, the Odesa National Art Museum, which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, suffered significant damage. In the museum, the walls were damaged, the windows and glass were broken, and the high-pressure water pipe was damaged.

The first specialized numismatic museum in Ukraine appeared in Odesa on the occasion of the 205th anniversary of the city.

The founder is the oldest public organization in Odesa - Odesa City Society of Collectors.

The museum collection includes more than 2.5 thousand coins and other exhibits. All periods in the history of the origin of civilization and statehood on Ukrainian soil, as well as the history of coinage and money circulation of Ukraine from ancient times to the period of independent development of the state are presented.

Also on display are antique pottery and ancient Rus small sculptures. In particular, metal pendant badges with signs of princely power of the Rurik family.

Odesa Port Museum named after Frants de Volan was founded in 1990 on the initiative of the port worker and collector Mykola Hlib-Koshansky, and was opened for the 200th anniversary of Odesa.

The museum is located in the ancient building of the barge - a night house for port loaders.

The exhibition is based on a unique collection of documents dedicated to the history of the construction and development of the Odesa seaport, founded in 1796 according to the plans of the Dutch engineer Frants de Volan. In particular, de Voland's plans for the development of the city and the harbor are presented.

There is also an exhibition of the naval museum, which was previously located in the building of the Odesa Sea Station. The pride of the museum is several hundred ship models.

Excursions are conducted with a visit to the museum and the port.

The Museum of the History of the Odesa Railway was founded in 1985.

During the existence of the museum, a large number of exhibits have been collected, reflecting the most important events in the history of the formation and development of the railway. These are old archival documents, maps, photographs, various awards, railway equipment, uniforms of past years, flags, models of rolling stock, etc. The museum's exposition reveals all stages of the construction and development of Odesa's railway transport, the labor traditions of many generations of railway workers.

More than 1,200 exhibits are presented to the attention of museum visitors.

The Museum of the Main Office of the National Police of Odesa Region was opened in Odesa in 1980 on the initiative of journalist and investigator Vasyl Davydenko, who during 40 years of service in the internal affairs bodies collected various thematic exhibits. In 1992, the museum received the title of "People's Museum".

The first exposition was presented with weapons of different years, uniforms of law enforcement officers of all ranks, documents of classified cases, as well as an exhibition of the development of the Odesa police in chronological order.

Currently, the museum's funds consist of over 40 thousand exhibits, 7 of which are presented for viewing in 6 halls of the museum. The exposition is divided into several thematic sections. Among the most interesting exhibits are the weapons of the tsarist police, manufactured back in 1848. One of the central stands of the museum is dedicated to the famous Odesa pickpockets and con artists, who, with the help of knowledge of psychology, sleight of hand, and simple card tricks, managed to leave their victims penniless.

Odesa Regional Academic Drama Theater, the oldest theater in the south of Ukraine, was built in 1875 by the merchant Velikanov, and was intended for the performances of the drama troupe beloved by Odesa residents by the famous provincial actor and entrepreneur Mykola Myloslavskyi.

Initially, the theater was named after the owner "Velikanov Theater", but in 1875 Velikanov sold the theater to Feliks Rafalovych, who called it the Russian Theater. Before the Bolshevik coup of 1917, the Russian theater served as the venue for the city's biggest theatrical events. Stars of the world stage played here: Sara Bernard, Volodymyr Davydov, Mariya Zankovetska, Panas Saksahanskyi, Mark Kropyvnytskyi and others. During the years of Soviet power, the state Odesa Russian Drama Theater was finally registered in this building.

In 2003, it opened after almost two years of reconstruction. Having preserved several of the best performances created earlier, the theater has performed a number of new high-profile productions.

On March 2, 2022, in connection with Russia's large-scale military invasion of Ukraine, the theater team made a decision to rename the theater - the word "Russian" was removed from its name.

The Odesa Regional Philharmonic is located in a massive gray building built in 1899 according to a sketch project by the Viennese architect Vikentiy Prohaska, redesigned by the outstanding Italian architect Oleksandr Bernardatstsi in the style of Italian Gothic with elements of the Renaissance.

It was originally built as the New Merchant Exchange. The acoustics of her hall were planned in such a way that the merchants who traded on the stock exchange could not overhear each other's conversations. In 1949, the building of the New Exchange was rebuilt for the Philharmonic, however, according to Odesa residents, the acoustics in it are still bad.

The wooden ceiling of the hall is made without a single nail from Lebanese cedar, gilded and painted. The walls of the hall are decorated with 6 panels by the artist Mykola Karazin.

The Odesa Zoo is located in Preobrazhenskyi Park near the railway station and Pryvoz.

The zoo was founded in Odessa in 1922, and was originally located on Primorsky Boulevard in the area of ​​the lower garden of the Vorontsov Palace. It was opened in the current location in 1937.

The Odesa Zoo contains rare animals listed in the Red Book of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the European Red List and the Red Book of Ukraine - 24 species: Far Eastern leopards, horses, baboons-hamadrils, brown bears, steppe cranes, peregrine falcons, owls and many more others

The Odesa Zoo is the only one in Ukraine where Indian elephants have successfully bred and became the happy parents of three baby elephants.

Excursions are conducted by advance order.

The monument to the ancient Roman poet Publius Ovidius Nazon, known in English as Ovid, in whose honor Ovidiopol is named, is located in a picturesque place on the banks of the Dniester estuary.

Ovid is known as the author of Metamorphoses and The Science of Love. He spent the rest of his life in exile in the northeastern provinces of the Roman Empire (most likely, on the territory of modern Romanian Constanta). In the 18th century, it was believed that the place of Ovid's exile was on the eastern bank of the Dniester estuary, so in 1795 the Tatar settlement Khadzhyher located here was renamed Ovidiopol.

The Museum of History and Local Lore of the Ovidiopol Village Council was founded in 1980.

The exposition covers the history of the region from ancient times. In particular, the archeological collection includes fragments of stucco ware, stone axes and graters, fishing sinkers, bones of animals and fish, as well as unique finds from the excavations of the Adzhyder fortress in Ovidiopol: Chios amphora, red clay pottery crater, two amphorae, two amphorae and a coin of Philip II (father of Oleksandr Makedonsky).

In the hall "Ukrainian room" are collected household items that in ancient times were in every Ukrainian home. The new exposition "Treasures from the attic" presents antiques donated to the museum by citizens.