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Lenin's Mausoleum

Coordinates: 55°45′13″N 37°37′11″E / 55.75361°N 37.61972°E / 55.75361; 37.61972
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"Lenin's Tomb" redirects here. For the book by David Remnick, see Lenin's Tomb: The Last Days of the Soviet Empire. For the British political weblog, see Lenin's Tomb (blog).

Lenin's Mausoleum (Russian: Мавзоле́й Ле́нина, romanized: Mavzoléy Lénina, IPA: [məvzɐˈlʲej ˈlʲenʲɪnə]) also known as Lenin's Tomb, situated in Red Square in the center of Moscow, is the mausoleum that serves as the current resting place of Vladimir Lenin. His embalmed body has been on public display there since shortly after his death in 1924 (with rare exceptions in wartime). Aleksey Shchusev's diminutive but monumental granite structure incorporates some elements from ancient mausoleums, such as the Step Pyramid and the Tomb of Cyrus the Great.

History

Lenin's death and final dispositions

The wooden version of Lenin's Mausoleum, March 1925

Lenin died January 21, 1924; two days later architect Aleksey Shchusev was charged with building a structure suitable for viewing of the body by mourners. A wooden tomb, in Red Square by the Kremlin wall, was ready January 27, and late that day Lenin's coffin was placed in it. More than 100,000[citation needed] people visited the tomb within the next six weeks. By August 1924, Shchusev had replaced the tomb with a larger one, and Lenin's body transferred to a sarcophagus designed by architect Konstantin Melnikov.

Pathologist Alexei Ivanovich Abrikosov had embalmed the body soon after Lenin's death, but by 1929 it was determined that it would be possible to preserve the body for much longer than usual; therefore, the next year a new mausoleum of marble, porphyry, granite, and labradorite (by Shchusev, I.A. Frantsuz and G.K. Yakovlev) was completed.

In 1973 sculptor Nikolai Tomsky designed a new sarcophagus.

On January 26, 1924, the Head of the Moscow Garrison issued an order to place the Guard of Honour at the mausoleum. Russians call it the "Number One Sentry". After the events of the Russian constitutional crisis of 1993, the Guard of Honour was disbanded. In 1997 the "Number One Sentry" was restored at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Alexander Garden.

The body was removed in October 1941 and evacuated to Tyumen, in Siberia, when it appeared that Moscow might be in imminent danger of falling to invading Nazi troops. After the war, it was returned and the tomb reopened.

More than 10 million people visited Lenin's tomb between 1924 and 1972.

Joseph Stalin's embalmed body shared a spot next to Lenin's, from the time of his death in 1953 until October 31, 1961, when Stalin was removed as part of de-Stalinization and Khrushchev's Thaw, and buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis outside the walls of the Kremlin.

Lenin's body was to have been transferred to the Pantheon upon its completion but the project was cancelled in the aftermath of de-Stalinization.

Preserving the body

One of the main problems the embalmers faced was the appearance of dark spots on the skin, especially on the face and hands. They managed to solve the problem by the use of a variety of different reagents in between baths. For example, if a patch of wrinkling or discoloration occurred it was treated with an acetic acid diluted with water. Hydrogen peroxide could be used to restore the tissues' original colouring. Damp spots were removed by means of disinfectants like quinine or phenol.[1]

Until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 the continued preservation work was funded by the Russian government. At that point the government discontinued financial support and now private donations support the preservation staff.[2]

Lenin's Mausoleum today

Vladimir Putin in front of Lenin's Mausoleum
Lenin's Mausoleum during a rally by the Russian Communist Party in 2009.

The Mausoleum is open every day from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm, except holidays, Mondays and Fridays. Visitors still wait in lines to see Lenin's body although they are not as long as they once were. Entrance is free of charge. All items capable of recording video or audio as well as taking a picture are strictly forbidden inside the mausoleum. All electronic items must be checked in a nearby building containing lockers. Before visitors are allowed to enter the mausoleum, armed police or military guards search each visitor. Visitors are required to show respect while in the tomb; photography and videotaping inside the mausoleum are forbidden, as are talking, smoking, keeping hands in pockets, or wearing hats (if male)[citation needed].

Since 1991, there has been some discussion about removing the Kremlin Wall Necropolis and burying Lenin's body. President Boris Yeltsin, with the support of the Russian Orthodox Church, intended to close the tomb and bury Lenin next to his mother, Maria Alexandrovna Ulyanova, at the Volkov Cemetery in Saint Petersburg; however, his successor, Vladimir Putin, opposed this, pointing out that a reburial of Lenin would imply that generations of citizens had observed false values during 70 years of Soviet rule.[3]

In January 2011, the United Russia party created a website where visitors could vote on whether Lenin's body should be buried.[4][5] [6]

See also

References

  1. ^ Zbarsky, Ilya (1999). Lenin's Embalmers. Harvill Press. p. 215. ISBN [[Special:BookSources/1-86046-515-4|1-86046-515-4[[Category:Articles with invalid ISBNs]]]]. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: invalid character (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ Mark McDonald (1 March 2004). "Lenin Undergoes Extreme Makeover". Associated Press. Retrieved 19 April 2010. [dead link] (alternative url)
  3. ^ See, e.g., a statement by President Putin in Sankt-Peterburgsky Vedomosty, July 19, 2001.
  4. ^ En finir avec la momie de Lénine
  5. ^ Голосование за и против захоронения тела Владимира Ленина началось в интернете
  6. ^ http://goodbyelenin.ru/
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55°45′13″N 37°37′11″E / 55.75361°N 37.61972°E / 55.75361; 37.61972

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