The Bibikhin Residential House is Wooden Buildings of Nizhny Novgorod, constructed in 1876 for the meshchanin A. N. Bibikhin at Korolenko Street, no. 16) in Nizhny Novgorod. It has been recognized as a Historic Buildings of the city and is one of the characteristic examples of the Wooden Architecture of Nizhny Novgorod of the second half of the 19th century.[1]

Construction History and Architectural Appearance

The house was built in a neighborhood that had grown up around the Church of the Three Hierarchs. Kanatnaya Street began to take shape in the 1830s–1840s and was fully established by the end of the 1850s; its name derived from the rope-making factories that had operated here in the early decades of the 19th century.[1]

During the design process, the decoration of the main façade was originally intended to be executed in the style of academic eclecticism. However, construction supervision was taken over by architect Ivan Kuzmich Kostryukov, who favored the "Russian" style — as a result, the building acquired features characteristic of vernacular architecture.[1]

The main façade is crowned by a triangular pediment with a paired window in its tympanum. The windows are framed by nalichniki (decorative window surrounds), fitted with paneled shutters, and topped by sandriks (decorative cornices above windows) with applied details of floral and geometric ornament in the field beneath them. The log ends at the corners are dressed with paneled pilaster strips "supporting" a simple frieze. A sill-course board runs at the level of the window sills. Despite the restraint and modesty of the ornamentation, the building is distinguished by well-judged proportions. Particularly noted is the high degree of preservation of the details — notably the paneled shutters, which have been lost almost everywhere else in this part of the city.[1]

Location and Surroundings

The building stands in immediate proximity to the Church of the Three Hierarchs — one of the few surviving examples in Nizhny Novgorod of the "Ton" Russian style of the mid to late 19th century. The church was built in 1859–1860 to the design of Nikolai Frelikh at the intersection of Kanatnaya and Nemetskaya Streets; construction was financed by second-guild merchant Luka Maksimovich Koptev. The church's bell tower became the dominant vertical landmark of the area, standing three times the height of the surrounding two-story buildings.[1]

The modest wooden volume of the Bibikhin house, set on its brick semi-basement, is clearly visible from Korolenko Street as one approaches the square in front of the church, and stands out against the ordinary surrounding buildings.[1]

Historical Notes

According to some accounts, which require verification, the writer Leonid Andreyev stayed in this house.[1]

Before receiving protected status, the house faced demolition: Fregat LLC intended to demolish no. 16 Korolenko Street along with a number of neighboring buildings under a contract for the redevelopment of built-up areas, with plans to construct a hotel and parking lot in their place. In the 2020s, the block of the Church of the Three Hierarchs, within whose boundaries the Bibikhin house stands, was being considered as a candidate for recognition as a single cultural heritage site: within the boundaries of Slavyanskaya, Korolenko, Studenaya, and Novaya Streets, there are more than 30 buildings already holding heritage status.[2] In March 2020, the Bibikhin Residential House was officially added to the register of cultural heritage objects of regional significance — the relevant orders (nos. 110, 111, and 129, dated 13 and 23 March 2020) were issued by the State Heritage Protection Directorate of Nizhny Novgorod Region.[3]

Sources

  1. opentextnn.ru — Chechenkov P.V. A City Outskirt a Hundred Years Ago: A Tour of a Disappearing Nizhny Novgorod (the Church of the Three Hierarchs neighborhood). Part Two: Kanatnaya — … (archive)
  2. Kommersant (Volga Region) — And a Whole Block of Heritage — In the 2020s, the block of the Church of the Three Hierarchs, within whose boundaries the Bibikhin house stands, was being considered as a candidate for recognition as a single cultural heritage… (archive)
  3. GIPERNN — More Than 20 Houses in the Center of Nizhny Novgorod Recognized as Cultural Heritage Objects — In March 2020, the Bibikhin Residential House was officially added to the register of cultural heritage objects of regional… (archive)
  4. czechprestige.cz — Témata k ústní části všeobecné SJZ z ruského jazyka (archive)