Published on: 2026-09-17
Source: Moscow Government – Правительства Москвы –
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Moscow and Saint Petersburg are strengthening interregional cooperation in the field of cultural heritage preservation. Saint Petersburg restorers are participating in work on iconic architectural monuments of the capital. They are involved in restoring such unique objects of high historical and architectural significance as the Ostankino and Kuzminki estates. Certain valuable elements of the Moscow estate Grachevka were transferred to workshops in Saint Petersburg. Restoration work is being carried out using funds from the Moscow city budget.
Ostankino Estate
Ostankino Palace is one of the few surviving wooden palaces in Russia. It is a unique architectural structure in Russia and the world, built entirely of wood as a palace-theater, with a preserved professional stage and theatrical machinery. The estate has preserved a professional stage and theatrical machinery.
Over 230 years of history, the palace has never been renovated or rebuilt. It has preserved authentic interiors and palace furnishings from the late 18th century, as well as an outstanding collection of interior and palace furnishings significant for their artistic value. The palace-theater building is made of wood to provide unique natural acoustics.
The palace theater was built at the behest of Count Nikolai Sheremetev, an ardent admirer of musical theater and dramatic art. This concept had no parallels in Russia. The Ostankino Palace embodied the Enlightenment-era idea of a pantheon of the arts. The centerpiece of the complex was the theater hall, which was unusual for estate houses. The grand rooms adjoining the theater served as a foyer and were simultaneously decorated as galleries of painting, graphics, and sculpture.
The palace-theater project was developed by the Italian architect Francesco Camporesi. Other outstanding masters of that time also worked on the creation of the structure, including Vincenzo Brenna and Giacomo Quarenghi.
Today, a large-scale restoration is underway at the Ostankino estate. Professional artists, cabinetmakers, plasterers, carpenters, and joiners are working on restoring its historical appearance. In 2025, the eastern part of the palace—the Egyptian Pavilion—was restored. This year, after restoration, the western part—the exquisite Italian Pavilion with galleries and a rotunda—was opened.
In the workshops of Saint Petersburg, about 20 complex wooden door panels of the Egyptian Pavilion were restored, as well as about a thousand square meters of original artistic parquet floors of the Egyptian and Italian Pavilions.
Currently, specialists have begun work in the central part of the unique architectural complex — in the palace theater. There, craftsmen are restoring decorative interior elements: tiled stoves, sculptures, parquet floors, and mirrors.
Sergey Sobyanin: Restoration of the palace-theater has begun at the Ostankino estateThe Egyptian Pavilion of the Ostankino Estate has been restored — Mayor of Moscow
Kuzminki Estate
Several objects of the Kuzminki estate are also being worked on by Saint Petersburg restorers. This is the largest architectural and park ensemble in Moscow in terms of the number of cultural heritage objects — there are about 40 here.
The estate was created by renowned architects and sculptors, among them Ivan Zherebtsov, Rodion Kazakov, Domenico Gillyardi, and Pyotr Klodt. Over 300 years, the unique property of the Stroganovs and the Golitsyns was visited by a diverse range of guests, including Peter I, Alexander II, and Empress Maria Feodorovna.
The first comprehensive restoration in 100 years began in 2024. The program includes more than 30 architectural monuments. Six of them have already been fully restored. Among them are two grottos, the Round (Lion) Pier, the bathhouse, the smithy, the griffin bridge, and the fence near the clergy house. Restoration continues on 15 cultural heritage sites, including the manor, cattle, and red yards, as well as the complex of structures along Poplar Alley.
Earlier, restoration workshops located in Saint Petersburg repaired and returned to their historical locations 16 cast-iron griffins and four sculptural torchères of the bridge with griffins, the railings and cast-iron plates of the Round Pier, 20 historic windows of the smithy, 10 windows of the bathhouse, about 60 original windows and 40 doors of the eastern and western wings in the manor courtyard, as well as bronze window and door fittings.
Sobyanin: This year, we will continue the restoration of the Horse Yard ensemble in KuzminkiSergey Sobyanin: Two pavilions have been restored in the Kuzminki estate
Grachevka Estate
Some elements of the architectural decoration of the Grachevka estate, located in the Khovrino district, were also transported to the St. Petersburg workshops for restoration. These include six lion sculptures and nine vases adorning the exquisite main house.
The estate acquired its modern appearance after 1895, when Khavrino was purchased by Mitrofan Grachev, a first guild Moscow merchant. At his commission, architect Lev Kekushev built the main house, a two-story northern service wing, a carriage shed, and a stable.
Currently, preservation work is underway in the main house of the estate, which holds the status of a federal cultural heritage site. Specialists have installed scaffolding and begun clearing the facades, restoring the rafter system and roofing, including those made of slate, and have also recreated the windows and doors.
Work has begun on preserving the main house of the Grachevka estate in the north of Moscow
Moscow also actively shares its developments in medicine, education, transport, and other fields with other regions. Earlier, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin and Saint Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov signed agreement on the implementation of the Moscow Unified Medical Information-Analytical System (EMIAS) in St. Petersburg clinics. The parties also concluded an additional agreement according to which Moscow will provide technical support for EMIAS in the northern capital’s hospitals.
The signing ceremony took place at the City Hospital of Saint George the Great Martyr, one of the oldest medical institutions in Saint Petersburg.
According to the EMIAS agreement, it is planned to implement it in all 197 medical institutions so that doctors and patients in the city have access to the system. Moscow specialists will participate in its implementation and then provide comprehensive support for its further operation.
On the portal mos.ru appeared large-scale special project, dedicated to the development of key sectors of Moscow. Among them are transport, industry, healthcare, education, sports, and construction. The special project helps to learn how the capital has changed over the past years, what initiatives aimed at making residents’ lives even more comfortable are currently being implemented, and what awaits Moscow and its inhabitants in the near future.
On the project page “Culture, Heritage, and the Leisure Industry” you can learn about how architectural monuments are preserved in the capital.
Moscow is the cultural life center of the country and holds one of the leading positions among metropolises in terms of the number of museums and exhibition halls. The city has created a film cluster uniting the MosKino film factory on Ryazansky Prospect, the Gorky Film Studio, and the MosKino film park.
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