Underground Palaces of the Moscow Metro – Part One

Kropotkinskaya station

Kropotkinskaya station was the very first station to be opened in the Moscow Metro system. Architect  A.N. Duskin  was the designer for this station, the marble used here came from the demolished Christ the Savior Cathedral, which now adorns the walls and floor. Looking at the interiors here gives more of a sense of an underground palace then a subway system.

 Ploshad Revolutsi station

This is probably the most astounding of all the stations with its beautiful arches and bronze figures which represented the creators of the new socialist order.  These figures become the columns for all the arches through out this whole station. This station was opened several after the first on March 13th, 1938. There are a total of 76 bronze figures in this station all of which were created by the sculptor Manizer. The columns themselves are of soldiers holding their weapons in hand along with the farm workers who held hammers and sickles. 

Mayakovskaya station

Of all the stations this probably the most architecturally impressive, considering that the columns are of a highly polished chrome. It can be seen that the well-lit domes create an incredible visual that leads the eyes down the platform with amazing grace and presence.  What is harder to see is the intricate mosaic panels that line the walls of the subway channel that depict soviet life. The scene itself is titled “A day in the Land of Soviets” which was created by the artist Deineka. This intricate mosaic starts out with the happy Soviet workers rising with the sun, working in the fields and factories, then returning to their beds as the sun sets in the last panel. It was recently restored to its former 1950’s look complete with its shiny new columns.

Novokuznetskaya station

The Novokuznetskaya station opened for use during the WWII on November 20, 1943. The Soviet Army was in the process of pushing back the Germans during this time. The station has a military theme demonstrating the Soviet might against the Nazis. Arhitects Baranov and Bykov used heros of Russian history, such as Alexander Nevsky a famous military commander, along with the likes of Dmitry Donskoy, Alexander Survorov, and Prince Kutuzo. The mosaics seen on the walls were first created in Leningrad during the siege and brought later to Moscow after the fighting stopped. What can’t be seen here are the remarkable marble benches of the platforms which were taken from Christ the Savior Cathedral as the city was being bombed and the Cathedral was being demolished under the Soviet leaders.