Solvychegodsk is a town with a rich history. It flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries thanks to the dynasty of Stroganovs, the famous merchants and industrialists. During that time, the town was known as Sol Vychegodskaya and was the capital of the Stroganov business empire as well as a major industrial, commercial, and cultural center of the Russian North.
The Stroganovs organized salt production, developed ore mining and blacksmithing, expanded trade, established icon-painting and jewelry workshops, and built and decorated churches. The magnificent stone Annunciation and Presentation Cathedrals still preserve the great legacy of the Stroganovs.
The Annunciation Cathedral is one of the oldest stone churches of the Russian North. It was built in the late 16th century as the family church of the Stroganovs in Solvychegodsk. The Annunciation Cathedral is associated with everything bearing the name of the Stroganovs in the history of Russian art: the famous Stroganov school of icon painting and pictorial embroidery, silver crafts, and books.
In the 20th century, the Annunciation Cathedral became home to the Solvychegodsk Museum. It was established on May 1, 1919 and housed the treasures from the cathedral’s sacristy.
Nowadays, the Annunciation Cathedral is one of the branches of the Solvychegodsk Museum of History and Art. It houses the main exhibition “The Artistic Legacy of Old Solvychegodsk” which features a large collection of Old Russian icons and works of decorative and applied art. The collection’s most valuable items are the ones that were donated by the Stroganovs to the Annunciation Cathedral and other Solvychegodsk churches, including icons of the 16th–17th centuries, works of pictorial embroidery, and silverware.
Apart from fine artworks, the collection features unique exhibits each of which has its own history of how it was commissioned, created, or donated.
Stroganov icons and works of pictorial embroidery from the Solvychegodsk Museum have represented Russian culture at many nationwide and international exhibitions.
The unique items from the Solvychegodsk Museum’s collection are of great interest to historians as they present an inexhaustible source of information about the most important processes that took place in the Russian culture of the 16th–17th centuries.
Exhibits are marked with AR stickers for identification purposes.
