Photo by D. REDTIUK
The Museum of Local Lore and History in Poltava is lavishly decorated both inside and outside.
Photo by A. VLASENKO
artifacts, and things that one can call “cosmic instal lations.” Incidentally, earthenware from Opishnya can be found in many museums of the world.
The wall of The Museum of Local Lore and History (a detail).
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Poltava Poltava has always been known as a particular ly hospitable place, with beautiful churches, beau tiful girls and beautiful gardens. When in the spring time, cherry trees are in full blossom and young girls, discarding their heavy winter clothes, fill the streets, it is surely a lovely sight. There are also some landmarks that you may find interesting to see, but the main attraction of Poltava is its mood — tranquil, serene, and scenic. If you possess a bit of romantic feeling in your heart, then you will find Poltava a nice place to come to. The first written mention of Poltava dates to the year 1174; at that time it was referred to as Ltava. On June 27 1709, a major battle was fought in the vicinity of Poltava. The Swedish troops of King Charles XII and the Ukrainian troops of Hetman Ivan Mazepa who hoped that his alliance with the Swedish king would make it possible to reestablish Ukrainian sovereignty, clashed with the forces led by Peter I. The battle was lost and with it Ukrainian independence. Ukraine found itself completely ab sorbed by the Russian Empire. Like in most other ancient cities of the world, the most interesting part of Poltava is its old sec tion — the neighborhood of Panyansky uzviz and other streets where you find little gardens, little houses with wooden shutters and tall linden trees. It is there, on Ivanova Hora, that you find the res tored house where the Ukrainian poet Ivan Kotlya revsky once lived. His long and comic poem Eneyi da was the first literary work written in the new Ukrainian literary language. The building which now houses the Poltava Lo cal Lore Museum, built in 1903–1908, can’t help
producing an impression and thus is not to be mis sed. It was constructed and decorated in Ukrainian Modern style. It combines the riot of well arran ged colors, sophistication of details and genero sity of outlines. The architect Vasyl Krychevsky, who designed the building, and the artist Serhiy Vasylkivsky who decorated the interiors, conscious ly introduced Ukrainian motifs to make the buil ding look definitely a Ukrainian creation rather than a variant of Russian style Modern or of in ternational Art Nouveau. The Ukrainianness of the building caused a sort of consternation among the locals but luckily the building was left to stand as it was built and decorated. The Uspensky Cathedral, built in the second half of the eighteenth century, was at that time the largest stone house in Poltava — but it was de stroyed in the 1930s. In recent years it was rebuilt; the 44 meter tall bell tower was for some reason spared by the Bolsheviks and there was no need to rebuild it. Originally, the bell tower had a bell which was made of the metal from the captured Turkish cannons at the end of the eighteenth cen tury. The bell has been placed for safe keeping in a museum. In the same neighborhood you’ll find a wooden church, Spaska, which was built in 1705– 1706. It is the only surviving eighteenth century wooden church in the Land of Poltavshchyna. From the top of Ivanova Hora, which happens to be a hill, there opens an impressive and vast panorama of the Khrestovozdvyzhensky (Of the Erection of the Holy Cross) Monastery and of the place near the Vorskla River. The church of the mo nastery is the only Ukrainian Baroque church in Ukraine that has seven domes. There are many other wonderful things to be found in Poltavshchyna — take those embroide red rushnyky (decorative towels), for example. You won’t find better ones anywhere else. ■