Published on: 2026-08-20
Source: Moscow Government – Правительства Москвы –
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31 Moscow Metro stations have been added to the Unified State Register of Cultural Heritage Sites. Among them are the stations from the first phase of metro construction, opened on May 15, 1935, as well as stations from subsequent decades. Their historic appearance, including valuable decorative elements — from mosaics and stained glass to sculptures, stucco, and lighting fixtures — is now under state protection.
Among the stations of the first phase, the register included “Arbatskaya” of the Filyovskaya metro line, “Sokolniki”, “Krasnoselskaya” and “Park Kultury” of the Sokolnicheskaya line. Each of them has preserved the distinctive architectural features of the early years of the Moscow metro.
Thus, the ground-level lobby Arbatskaya station was built in the shape of a five-pointed star. The unusual design was related to the nearby People’s Commissariat of Defense of the USSR. The station project was developed by architect Leonid Teplitsky, with Georgy Kibardin serving as the design engineer.
Ground-level vestibule Sokolniki station The designers were masters Ivan Taranov and Nadezhda Bykova. The pavilion, in the form of two propylea covered with a slab and exits on both sides, is executed in the spirit of park architecture and is located on the alley leading to the Sokolniki Park of Culture and Rest. The station’s decoration includes elements such as a high granite plinth with flower beds along the facades and two sculptural friezes by Petr Mitkovitser dedicated to the construction of the first stations of the Moscow Metro. Furthermore, in 1935, sculptures of athletes were installed near the vestibule. Later they were dismantled, and in 2018 restored based on archival photographs during a large-scale restoration.
Krasnoselskaya Station — one of the few pavilions on which the inscription “Metro” remains. The finishing uses black granite, dark red porphyry, and terrazzo plaster. The project was created by architects Boris Vilensky and Vladimir Ershov with the participation of Lyubov Shagurina. The structural engineer was Vasily Dmitriev.
Ground-level north vestibule Park Kultury station resembles a park rotunda. It was designed by Nikolai Kolli and Sergey Andrievsky. Inside the vestibule, there is a panel depicting Maxim Gorky, created by artist Lev Ryabov using the Florentine mosaic technique in 1966–1968.
A unique stained glass window has been restored at the Sokolniki metro stationExit No. 8 from the Komsomolskaya metro station was opened near Leningradsky railway station
Valuable elements of decorative design of metro stations are also under state protection. One of the most recognizable examples is Novoslobodskaya station The circular metro line, opened in 1952. It was designed by a creative team: architects Alexey Dushkin and Alexander Strelkov, as well as design engineers Boris Prikot and Alexey Semyonov.
The main artistic feature of the station is 32 stained-glass windows made by Latvian craftsmen based on sketches by Pavel Korin. They contain medallions depicting representatives of various professions and ornamental compositions on the theme of Soviet symbolism. The end wall of the platform hall is decorated with a smalt panel titled “Peace to the Whole World.” The main facade of the above-ground vestibule is adorned with a massive six-column portico with a stepped attic.
Another station of the Circle Line of the metro, the valuable elements of which have been included in the registry, — “Prospekt Mira”. It was also opened in 1952. The design was created by architects Vladimir Gelfreich and Mikhail Minkus with the participation of sculptor Georgy Motovilov. The main theme was the transformation of nature and the development of agriculture in the USSR, which is why there are many plant motifs in the decoration.
The ground-level vestibule is adorned with clocks featuring bas-reliefs of a man and a woman. Between the entry arches is the sculpture “Abundance” — a female figure holding a basket of fruit, restored in 2016 based on archival photographs. In the interior, palm-shaped columns stand out, decorated with green majolica and golden stucco. The station’s pylons are faced with cream-colored marble. Above the cornices are ceramic friezes with wreaths and medallions depicting agricultural workers. The vault is decorated with a stucco rhomboid grid, and the hall is illuminated by bronze chandeliers.
Paveletskaya station The Circle Line of the metro was opened on January 1, 1950. Its artistic theme is connected with the Volga region and the theme of labor, and the decor incorporates motifs of the Volga lands — the country’s breadbaskets. Under the dome of the escalator hall is a smalt panel by artist Isaak Rabinovich, dedicated to the Stalin Plan for Nature Transformation — a program for changing the country’s climate, known in the late 1940s.
The pillars of the platform hall are clad in marble with geometric patterns, and at the corners are half-columns of the Corinthian order made from solid marble blocks. The floor is paved with black gabbro with a pattern of gray granite, and the vault is illuminated by ten-arm chandeliers. At the end of the hall is the mosaic panel by Pavel Korin «Unity of Workers and Peasants».
Valuable items were also added to the registry Belorusskaya station Of the Zamoskvoretskaya metro line. It was opened on September 11, 1938, as part of the second stage of the Moscow Metro. The architectural project was worked on by Nikolai Andrikanis and Nadezhda Bykova. The station vestibule is integrated into the building of the Belorussky railway station.
The ticket and escalator hall is decorated with tall octagonal columns featuring entasis (a slight bulge) and a coffered ceiling with rosettes. Several types of marble were used in the design, and torchiere lamps shaped like candles are installed in the platform hall niches. Additionally, at the station, one can see the sculptural group “Soviet Belarus” by Sergey Orlov, created in 1952.
Sokol station The Zamoskvoretskaya metro line was also opened on September 11, 1938, as part of the second phase. At that time, it was the terminus on the Gorkovsko-Zamoskvoretskaya metro line. The station was named after the nearby Sokol settlement, which appeared in the 1920s. Initially, there was only one aboveground entrance here—the eastern one.
“Sokol” has a rare design for the Moscow metro, featuring a single row of columns along the center of the platform. The platform hall consists of two parallel vaults supported by the central row of columns and the side walls. The station was designed by architects Konstantin and Yuri Yakovlev. The decoration, featuring classical elements, uses marble, onyx, cast bronze elements, and stucco. The floor is laid with gray and pink granite.
Krasnopresnenskaya station The Ring Line of the metro was opened on March 14, 1954, as part of the fourth stage of the Moscow Metro. The project was worked on by young architects of JSC “Mosproekt”: Viktor Egerev, Tatyana Ilyina, Mikhail Konstantinov, Felix Novikov, and Igor Pokrovsky. The rotunda of the above-ground vestibule was designed by Karo Alabyan — one of the key masters of Stalinist architecture.
The decoration of the station is dedicated to the revolutionary events of 1905 and 1917. The vaults of the platform hall are adorned with thematic compositions, and a sculpture titled “Militiaman” is installed in front of the entrance to the vestibule. The authors of the bas-reliefs and sculptures were a group of artist-sculptors formed by Nikolai Shcherbakov. He won the competition for the station’s decoration and involved his classmates: Georgy Kolesnikov, Yuri Ushkov, Vladimir Fedorov, and Yuri Pommer.
The list of stations with valuable elements included in the registry also includes: Kurskaya, Arbatskaya, Smolenskaya, and Kievskaya on the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya metro line; Teatralnaya, Aeroport, and Dinamo on the Zamoskvoretskaya metro line; Alexandrovsky Sad, Kievskaya, and Smolenskaya on the Filevskaya metro line; VDNH, Rizhskaya, and Alekseevskaya on the Kaluzhsko-Rizhskaya metro line; Okhotny Ryad, Lubyanka, Biblioteka imeni Lenina, and Komsomolskaya on the Sokolnicheskaya metro line; and Park Kultury, Kurskaya, Dobryninskaya, and Oktyabrskaya on the Koltsevaya metro line.
Inclusion of stations in the Unified State Register allows preserving their historical appearance and authentic architectural elements. Work on cultural heritage sites is carried out according to projects approved by the capital Department of Cultural Heritage (Mosgornasledie), and based on the issued permits. All stages of the restoration are carried out under the supervision of the department’s specialists.
Photographs and other information about Moscow’s cultural heritage are available in the new section “Cultural Heritage” of the city media bank “Mosphoto.”
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