Journey through old photographs. Mariinsky Theatre

I was going to write a short story about the houses on the Kryukov Canal Embankment, and I wanted to find an old photo of the area to show how little it has changed. I opened the site pastvu, where we collect found old photos from various sources. "We" in this context are ordinary people who are interested in history. Both amateur photos from home archives and professional ones from famous photo studios can be found on this site.

The first picture I found seemed almost a perfect illustration.

Krukov Canal. Kashin bridge. 1932 – 1940. Author unknown

If you go for a walk along this route today, you will see almost the same thing, but one detail makes this view slightly different from what I am used to. In this photo, that detail is not very noticeable. But when I opened the next picture, which was taken with a different lens, the unfamiliar shape of the roof at the back of the frame immediately caught my attention. The triangular roof with chimneys is not what we're used to seeing.

Kashin Bridge. 1947 – 1948. Source: Leningrad Architecture and Construction No.1 1948

In the title photo I photographed the view from the Kashin Bridge, and this is how it will change if you go closer:

This green house, whose roof has undergone such substantial transformation, is the building of the Mariinsky Theater. On the top floor is a spacious room with an overhead light, where the workshops are located. In those workshops sets and costumes for opera and ballet performances are prepared. There is a picture of the roof repairs in 1944 (in Soviet times the Mariinsky Theatre was called the Kirov Theatre).

Repairs to the Kirov Theater. 1944

The building of the theater was heavily damaged during World War II. In September 1941 the right wing was destroyed by a direct hit of a land mines bomb. The wall on the side of the Kryukov Canal was badly shattered by shrapnel. All in all, during the siege 19 shells hit the theater building. The repairs were already started in 1943, the main works were done in winter and spring of 1944. The figures of people on the roof are probably carpenters or bricklayers, but it could be otherwise. Theater actors also took part in the reconstruction, temporarily becoming unskilled laborers.

Destroyed part of the Kirov Theater. 1941

The Kirov Theater after a shelling. 1941

Looking at these photos, I noticed the shape of the wall overlooking the Kryukov Canal It looks different now. This part of the theater building was rebuilt during the reconstruction of 1952-1960.

Renovation of the embankment by the Kirov Theatre. 1952 – 1960

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Smartphone	Xiaomi Redmi 3
Location	Saint Petersburg, Russia