Kostroma

Kostroma was established in the 12th century. During the time of Polish-Lithuanian intervention in the beginning of the 18th century Kostroma played a prominent role in the formation of people's volunteer corps leaded by Minin and Pozharsky. Another representative of Kostroma, peasant Ivan Susanin took the enemies to thick woods and deadly swamps, where he met his death, but where the enemy troops vanished, too.

The Central district of Kostroma comprises the buildings and structures built in a classic architectural style during the period between 1770-1830. It's a fine example of unique, monolithic urban architectural complex. Kostroma is famous with its wonderful architectural monuments, Ipatyevsky Convent (16th-17th cent.) and the Church of Resurrection on Debra River (1652). Ipatyevsky Convent is located in a beautiful place, where the Kostroma River flows into Volga. The St. Trinity Cathedral of Convent is a powerful, monumental structure beautifully ornamented and decorated with the wall-paintings of Sila Slavin and Yury Nikitin and their team. The wall-paintings look amazingly inspiring and display fantastic artistic flair of the artists, who managed to express the richest gamut of human feelings raised by the awe of God and anxious expectation of talking with God.

There is a museum on the territory of convent with an interesting collection of icons of the 16th-19th centuries, needlework, books, church plates and some exhibits representing the art of provincial painting of the 18th-19th centuries. The best Russia's museum of nature with fine collection of butterflies is located there. Moreover, this is a place where one can find a wonderful collection of stuffed animals and birds - representatives of local fauna.

Wooden churches and chapels built in the 18th-19th centuries were moved to Ipatievsky Convent from the nearest villages.

The Museum of Arts is located in Kostroma, not far from the town centre. The collection comprises fine pieces of painting of the 18th-19th centuries. The Museum also has an interesting collection of the Russian art of the first years of the 20th century.