The Lipetsk Regional Museum of Local Lore houses a rare exhibit — the personalized medal awarded to Agrippina Alekseyevna Bykhanova at the International Economy Exhibition in Vienna in 1904.
The first exhibition of the works of industry of all nations was held in London in 1851. As it brought together participants from many countries, it became known as the world’s fair. This exhibition featured various industrial goods, handicrafts, machines, production techniques, mineral resources, and works of fine arts. The best products were put on public display and awarded with prizes, which served as a quality mark for consumers.
In 1904, Agrippina Bykhanova, a resident of Lipetsk, participated in the International Economy Exhibition in Vienna with her horticultural company “Bykhanova A.A. and Sons”. The Bykhanov family was known not only in Lipetsk but throughout Russia. Vasily Vasilyevich Bykhanov founded the “Bykhanov Horticultural Company”. After he died in 1896, his wife Agrippina Bykhanova continued the family business together with their sons, Mikhail and Ivan. She managed the paperwork and the cash register. In their nurseries, they grew fruit and ornamental trees and shrubs — both typical of Central Russia and brought from around the world. For modern Lipetsk citizens, the Bykhanov name is associated mostly with the city park “Bykhanov Garden”. However, older city residents also remember the Bykhanov Alley in the Lower Park. They also remember the Bykhanov House, built in the Russian Revival style with carved window frames, on Lenin Street (former Dvoryanskaya Street).
After the Russian Revolution of 1917, the Bykhanov family
moved to Moscow. However, they cherished fond memories of the city where they
had spent most of their lives. The museum collection contains a letter from
Olga Mikhailovna Pekh, the granddaughter of Vasily Bykhanov. She wrote that the
family had a large number of awards, but unfortunately, all of them had been lost
except for one — the medal for participation in the Vienna Exhibition of 1904.
In 1979, at her request, the medal was donated to the museum by the Lipetsk
historian Danilov, along with other artifacts.
