Anatol Latotin

Herouni mirror radio telescope

2025-12-09T08:57:07Z

I wanted to call this post “Monuments to ambition and ego” :-) I’ll explain why below.

The Herouni telescope is the world’s first radio-optical telescope, ROT-54/2.6. It was created by Soviet radiophysicist Paris Herouni. Construction was completed by 1987. The telescope is located on the slope of Aragats — the highest mountain in Armenia.

It’s about 40 km from Yerevan to the telescope. Easy to visit as a day trip.

At the entrance, the guard asked for 2000 drams per person. I think you could negotiate down to 1000–1500, but we didn’t bother.

I saw many complaints online, including from foreigners, that the guard pockets the money. But from my experience, this is common practice at abandoned sites in Armenia and Georgia.

Arrived:

When you stand at the edge of the dish, the telescope doesn’t fit into the frame.

Switching to a wider lens. A monastery is visible in the background.

In clear weather, Ararat is visible behind the monastery from here. But that day it was hazy.

Switching to the widest lens.

Two videos to get a sense of scale.

Shadows waving hands:

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A person walking:

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The telescope has a fixed radio mirror 54 meters in diameter and a 25-meter pendulum. Initially, Herouni planned a telescope of 100 or even 200 meters, but funding wasn’t approved.

While researching online, I found conflicting opinions on whether the telescope was fully operational and whether any discoveries were made. Here are some quotes:

🔔 The village of Orgov is located on the other side of the gorge from the village of Byurakan. [...] According to the plan, Orgov was supposed to be resettled to avoid building a road through the gorge to a dead-end village, but Herouni, without waiting for permission, mobilized his subordinates and local residents. As a result, a road through the gorge was built, construction materials were delivered, and construction began.

🔔 The institute was not originally supposed to build any telescope; it was meant to produce reference antennas and carry out dry technical measurements and calibrations. But Herouni had other plans — under the guise of one such reference antenna, he intended to build the world’s first dual-band telescope.

🔔 The largest reference antenna according to state standards was a 32-meter dish, and according to Herouni’s calculations, this was not enough for a project of his scale. So, without much approval, he ordered the construction of a 54-meter metal dish in a karst sinkhole that had been enlarged using explosives, dedicating all available production capacity to the new project.

🔔 [...] the key feature — dual-band capability (which, by the way, Moscow didn’t even know about) — required somehow fitting in a full optical telescope as well.

🔔 For this, a special pendulum-like structure was designed, with a four-ton optical telescope mirror (2.6 meters in diameter) mounted at the top. This made the original structural calculations essentially useless [...] In particular, the straight supports were replaced with curved ones, leading to unwanted vibrations and making the telescope incapable of performing its main function — smoothly and continuously tracking a distant point in the sky, because it was literally shaking.

Here’s why I included them.

It stands out how many actions were taken against constraints. There’s a strong conflict with the reality of that time. Such resistance increases the chance of failure.

Of course, many breakthrough projects were born by overcoming resistance from established norms. But it’s important to understand what kind of resistance is being overcome. I’d distinguish two types of “against”:

Healthy — against inertia, fear, rigid regulations, and bureaucratic stagnation. Without this, nothing new often appears at all.

Unhealthy — against calculations, physics, team capacity, operational logic, and future maintenance. This path often leads to something that “never really works.”

As I studied the history of the Herouni telescope, I increasingly felt that this was a case of “destructive against.” That’s largely why it ended up as a monument to ambition.

Of course, not everything created against the odds is doomed to fail. But the more unresolved resistance there is in a project, process, or relationship, the higher the chance the result will be non-viable — and eventually rejected by reality.

I noticed that very little foliage had accumulated in the telescope dish:

I doubt the dish has been cleaned in decades. Interesting why more leaves didn’t gather.

Patterns:

The dish consists of 3600 panels made of an aluminum-based alloy with magnesium, copper, and manganese. The panels were hand-polished to an accuracy of 70 microns. Good for the 1980s — not great by today’s standards.

Next to the dish is the control room:

Control panels are still preserved inside:

Testing equipment:

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Panel fragments:

Traces of modernization (1995–2010):

Clocks on the panels:

I got interested in what sidereal time is. It turns out it’s measured based on Earth’s rotation relative to distant stars, not the Sun. A sidereal day lasts 23 hours 56 minutes 4 seconds. That means sidereal clocks constantly lag behind standard time.

Watches on the wall:

I wanted to take the clock but didn’t go through with it. On one hand, it will be removed sooner or later anyway. On the other — something stops me from taking part in that.

There are more control panels in ather rooms

used for managing the territory.

Surprisingly, the ceiling is well preserved:

The parquet survived too, though not as well:

Arches are common in Armenian architecture. This building is no exception.

Previously, you could go down

and enter the telescope dish:

But now the entrance is welded shut with a grid.

Remains of a telescope model have been preserved in the control room:

The smaller telescope in the model is the Herouni telescope — the one we’re currently at. They planned to build an even larger one nearby, but those plans were never realized.

A drafting table from FRG:

Interesting that the country where the table was made (FRG) and the country that bought it (USSR) no longer exist.

At some point, an art festival was held in this building:

On the back side of the building, an aluminum entrance group has been preserved:

There is a sundial outside. It still works!

Nearby is a hangar where antennas were made.

We tried to get inside the hangar, but a man came out and said: “Why are you breaking the door!”

Testing one of the mirror antennas:

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Two residential buildings are located next to the control room. One of them is in good condition.

We found a room with fragments of documents.

A fragment from “The Good Soldier Švejk”:

Hmm, perhaps this is a test page of the system:

A form for autobiography:

A story about a hotel in Italy:

If you convert 1982 lira to late-2025 dollars, a double room with breakfast would cost around $180.

After the collapse of the USSR, record-keeping deteriorated:

Near the telescope there is a solar energy concentrator. It was intended as an alternative to oil-based energy.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Herouni found investors from the UK. They wanted to build the installation there, but he managed to negotiate building it in Armenia.

During construction, Herouni discovered that patent and authorship rights were not secured for him in the contract. The parties failed to agree, and construction was halted.

If this is indeed how it happened, it suggests a conflict between personal ego and a project that deserved to exist.

In this case, negotiations seem to have failed, and Herouni chose not to continue. Although theoretically, he could have kept negotiating and improving terms.

Even without securing the patent, the project could still have been realized. Perhaps it would have earned more. More importantly, the technology would have had a chance to live. Humanity would have taken another step forward.

Or maybe Herouni simply lost faith in the project 🤔 We don’t see solar concentrators as a widespread solution today. Maybe the calculations weren’t perfect either.

In the residential building, unattached mirrors still remain. People write on them when they visited.

Rosehip grows everywhere:

Let’s collect some for tea:

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Near the concentrator there’s a trailer with another antenna.

There’s also an unusual structure nearby with a mirrored roof.

There’s some kind of shaft visible. Its purpose is unclear.

Working for the blog:

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Probably the best-preserved abandoned place we’ve visited. There will be more posts about other abandoned locations. Follow updates on X.

Не уп

анс!

Is it worth visiting?

Sources of the quotes: by Alexey Chekanov and by Alexander Rechkin, as well as Wikipedia.

Coffee

2025-07-01T00:00:00Z

Brewing coffee in different places.

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After the tornado. Belarus. July 2025

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Dnieper. Belarus. July 2025

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Mountains. Georgia. May 2025

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Hanoi. Vietnam. October 2024

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Sevan. Armenia. June 2024

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Khndzoresk. Armenia. August 2024

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Debarkader. Belarus. May 2024

Minsk watch plant “Luch”

2025-12-04T19:43:46Z

Minsk Watch Plant “Luch” was founded in 1953. The only watch factory in Belarus. 80% of the shares belong to the Swiss company Franck Muller International.

In 2023, a museum opened with a watch exhibition and a guided tour of the factory. The tour tells the history of the plant and shows the stages of production.

Machines cut out the watch blanks.

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You can order a personal engraving.

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It is possible to produce dials with your own design.

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They showed the technology of dial printing. The process is neither simple nor fast. Each color is applied and baked one by one.

A design principle comes to mind: it doesn’t matter how complex or long the process is, only the result matters. If the result isn’t good, the process has no value, no matter how difficult it was.

The museum exhibition contains a collection of watches produced by the factory at different times. There are watches that parents used to wear.

Not far from the museum there is a brand store. It also sells watch models from the past.

Visiting the factory led to reflections on the place of analog wristwatches in the modern world. Mobile phones have taken over the function of telling time. Smartwatches have taken over the wristwatch market. Expensive analog watches exist as a status symbol. For ordinary wristwatches, their role is decoration and accessory. That means you need several to match different looks.

Rings, earrings, chains. And now watches are a decorative accessory, having lost their functional purpose.

I liked the idea of one-hand watches. Great for those who want to slow down their life.

Verdict: worth a visit.

Hanoi. Part 1

2026-05-29T12:15:41Z

Days 3–4.

In the morning, I go for a walk and grab some coffee. Since I’m still getting my bearings and don’t know where to find specialty coffee yet, I stop by Starbucks (forgive me, coffee gods 🙏🏻). In Vietnam, everything starts early: even a chain Starbucks opens at 7 a.m. Inside are regular city residents. I noticed that people in Vietnamese cities like to dress up.

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I felt that little bit of dissonance again: when you arrive in a warm country, you relax, slip into a semi-vacation vibe, and tend to dress more casually. But then in big Asian cities you see people clearly making an effort to look good. In moments like that, I feel a slight mismatch.

Vietnamese Starbucks is surprising: they have specialty coffee and alternative brewing methods. For the first time, I’ve seen siphon brewing in a chain coffee shop.

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When you arrive in Asia, you notice there are all kinds of details everywhere. So many details! Tourists traditionally take photos of the wires in Asian cities.

Although some utilities run underground — the signs on the sidewalks point that out. I guess those are mostly high-voltage cables.

In old Vietnam, property tax depended on the width of the facade facing the street. This had a huge impact on the architecture of the cities. Let's call this type of architecture a “tube house”: a narrow facade, a long and deep layout, the ground floor used for a shop or service business, and the family living upstairs. Sometimes it can be a hotel or a multi-story business.

Because of this layout, most of the city is hidden deep inside the buildings.

There really are a ton of details. For example: why is there a plastic bottle filled with liquid hanging among the wires 🤔; above the entrance, a small yellow sign says “Hanovet Consulting and Investment Joint Stock Company”; and on the ground there are tiles dating back to the French colonial era.

An unusual building from the French colonial era:

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Of course, if you're talking about Vietnam, you have to show the scooters!

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There are a lot of scooters. A whole lot. They're a full-fledged part of the environment. Quite often, most of the sidewalks are used for scooter parking.

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I keep the sound on videos like these. Almost everywhere it's simply the sound of the city — meaning scooters. It's one of the signature sounds of Hanoi.

Curbs are intentionally sloped so it's easy to ride scooters on and off them. Ramps are often added as well.

A noticeable part of everyday Vietnamese life happens on scooters: people snack on them and relax on them.

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In many blogs I've seen people complain about Vietnamese scooter traffic. The main criticism is that scooter riders don't follow traffic rules and don't yield to pedestrians. In reviews like these, I often sense a bit of a condescending attitude: as if Vietnamese people are doing it wrong, unlike “civilized” people.

But in almost a week in Hanoi, I didn't see a single accident or conflict. You just have to cross the street differently than most Europeans are used to: slowly, predictably, and paying attention to what's around you. Stay engaged. Don't walk across the road staring at your phone and expecting everyone else to treat you like you're the most important person on it.

Cycle rickshaws:

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These days, it seems like they mostly carry tourists. I used to feel something like secondhand embarrassment watching skinny Vietnamese guys haul around overweight tourists. For some reason, I’ve become much more relaxed about it now.

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Life here happens out on the street.

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In this kind of heat, coconut water really hits the spot.

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Little by little, coconuts start taking over every available surface on the streets.

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Vietnam is a communist country, and flags are everywhere.

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An essential part of everyday Vietnamese life is the small plastic stool.

There are a huge number of places to eat in Asia. Locals mostly eat not at home but at small street eateries. Sometimes they're barely marked at all: just a few chairs and tables on the sidewalk. You notice it especially at lunchtime and in the evening.

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On the morning of the fourth day, I brew coffee in a small park.

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Vietnam has a ritual of paper offerings: ritual paper is burned so that money, possessions, and other gifts can be sent to the spirit world through fire. It's often burned right on the ground, sometimes in metal containers.

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These can be paper bills, notes, sheets covered with silver or gold foil, and even paper replicas of real things: clothes, phones, houses, and cars. It's kind of a mix of Buddhism, Taoism, and ancestor worship.

Vietnam is a good place to buy Apple gear: prices are already attractive, and you can often get a VAT refund on top of that. I'm considering buying a MacBook, but they don't have the configuration I need.

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In Apple Stores, I always take selfies using the laptops and open the Artdictators portfolio in the browser.

As a tradition, we send ourselves a postcard.

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It was the first time in about 15 years that a postcard never made it )-:

Another video for the “People doing things” collection:

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And the sign for the sign collection:

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Vietnamese people (in this case, let's talk about Hanoi residents for now) love plants. They grow them in pots and place them on streets and balconies.

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There are many sprawling trees in the city that provide pleasant shade. And that's important: it's over 30°C outside and humid.

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You come across some very interesting trees. I think this is a banyan tree — a type of ficus. It expands its trunk through hanging roots. When they reach the ground, they take root, thicken, and turn into additional trunks.

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In Vietnam, such trees often grow near pagodas, temples, and communal houses. In the second photo, the banyan tree is growing right next to a temple: the entrance is to the left of the trunk.

One of Vietnam's signature dishes is spring rolls: vegetables and meat wrapped in rice paper, though they can also be vegetarian. While walking down the street, we randomly chose a place that looked appealing from the outside.

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Spring rolls come with different fillings. They can be fried in oil or served “fresh.”

In Vietnam, food is often served with garlic and chili, a handful of herbs, and a liquid with pickled vegetables — either kohlrabi or daikon, I think.

It turned out that the restaurant is listed in the Michelin Guide. Maybe food fried in oil isn't particularly healthy, but it's definitely tasty!

Locals eat here too. That's always a good sign that a place isn't just for tourists.

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Seeds:

On the bottom shelf are Vietnamese sunflower seeds with different flavors: coconut, salted, and others. We really like them. We pretty much snack on them nonstop during the trip.

Beer snacks:

I have a story about chicken feet from 2012. We walked into a local place. A truly local one: the menu was only in Vietnamese. We ordered beer, and you had to order something to go with it. In situations like that, there are two options: look at what the locals are eating and point at it saying “this”; or randomly point at something on the menu. I chose the second option. They brought deep-fried chicken feet. Back then I couldn't really appreciate them: I tried eating them, gnawing on them. I think I was supposed to eat them whole, but I didn't dare.

Historically, China had a strong influence on Vietnam. Until the 20th century, Vietnam occupied roughly the same cultural position for China as Korea or Japan — an independent country, but one deeply embedded in the Chinese civilizational sphere. Until 939, northern Vietnam, including the area of present-day Hanoi, was ruled by Chinese dynasties. That's why old Vietnam looks more “Chinese”: you come across temples built right into residential neighborhoods. They're easy to miss — sometimes all you can see is the entrance.

Entrance to one of the oldest Buddhist temples. If the translation is correct, it's called the “Temple of the Sacred Stone.”

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Entrance to the “Eastern Land” Temple. The sign below says, “Visitors are asked not to leave vehicles in the residential courtyard.” This is an interesting feature of Hanoi: many old temples and communal houses are literally built into residential neighborhoods.

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Hanoi has a narrow street where trains pass a couple of times a day. These aren't tourist trains but regular trains of Vietnam's national railway network. The line was built by French colonists in the early 20th century.

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The city gradually grew around the tracks. Land is expensive, so houses were built closer and closer to the railway.

It used to be an ordinary neighborhood. But social media made the street popular, and now it's become too touristy. I don't really like places like that: they feel more like an attraction than a living part of the city.

We decide not to wait for the train. But then we meet a kitty.

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Lenin and the kids. And a scooter.

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Of course, Hanoi has Vietnamese clothing markets. You can find any brand there — from Abibas to Dolchi & Banana.

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I noticed that people in Hanoi seem to love small decorative dogs.

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Cats are relatively rare in Vietnam because the Vietnamese word for “cat” (mèo) sounds somewhat similar to the word for “poor” (nghèo). Because of this, there's a superstition that a cat's meow is associated with poverty or bad luck.

On days like this, it's easy to walk a couple dozen kilometers. In Vietnam, you're offered a massage at every turn. In particular, there are lots of places with Foot Massage signs. We decided to give it a try.

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First, they soak your feet in something like a chamomile infusion. Then they rub and massage them.

It's pleasant. But honestly, I feel a bit uncomfortable in places like this. I can't shake the thought that the massage therapists are thinking something like: “So, do you like it, you big smelly white monkey?”

Selfie of the day:

We found a place with incredibly delicious pastries on the map.

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It turned out to be quite popular.

While we're waiting for our order, I wrap up the day by filming a traffic jam made entirely of motorbikes.

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To be continued. Next, we set off on a boat trip through the islands...

Suspension bridge in the cave city of Khndzoresk

2025-12-04T19:43:44Z

We spent the night in the town of Goris. Winter returned at night, and everything was covered with snow. In the morning, the snowfall continued:

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We decided to continue the route and set off. When we turned from the asphalt road onto a dirt road, it became difficult to distinguish the edges of the road. At some point, we decided to turn back, as we were afraid of getting stuck in the middle of nowhere. We even turned around (which was also scary—I constantly feared getting stuck in the snow). Just as we turned, a minibus with tourists drove past us. We decided to take the risk and continue the journey. We turned around again and went further.

The locals looked at us:

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And went about their business:

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We reached the suspension bridge. To get to it, you have to go down a wooden staircase.

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At first, I was a bit upset because of the fog. But it turned out to be unnecessary. Visibility was, of course, worse than on a clear day. But the thick fog added mystery. Because of it, details appeared gradually. And the silence.

The bridge is 160 meters long and 63 meters high.

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Interestingly, the bridge was not built by the state, but by a local resident, Zhora Aleksanyan, with his own money in 2012 in memory of his parents. The bridge was built without machinery. Only after construction was it inspected and approved for use.

The effect of the construction turned out to be greater than expected. After the bridge appeared, many tourists began visiting the cave city. Before the bridge, one had to walk about 5 kilometers through the gorge, but the bridge allows it in just a few minutes.

From the middle of the bridge, the dark openings of caves and remains of buildings are already visible.

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Khndzoresk was founded about 3,000 years ago (though the exact founding period is unknown). Initially, people lived in caves carved into the mountain. Later, houses began to be built in front of these caves. The roofs of some houses served as terraces for the houses located higher up the slope.

People lived in the cave city until the 1960s. Then residents moved up to the top. Because “a Soviet person shouldn’t live in caves.” And also because it became difficult to deliver goods by car.

The city stretched about 3 kilometers. There were about 5,000 caves, of which around 2,000 were homes. There were 5 schools and 2 post offices.

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In the middle of the cave rooms, a tandir (locally called tonir) has been preserved. It was used for cooking and heating.

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Houses had rear cave rooms. In front of them, stone houses were built. The roofs of some houses served as terraces for the higher ones. In the 1960s, the houses in front of caves were dismantled, moved, and rebuilt on top of the mountain. In the cave city itself, only caves and some remains of structures remained.

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Because of the snow and fog, the atmosphere was fairytale-like. Silence and beauty!

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The cloudiness changes very quickly. Now the bridge is fully visible, and the view from it opens further:

The church has been preserved and still functions to this day:

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One cave house has been preserved in its original form. A local, Sevada, gives tours there. He was born and lived in Khndzoresk for 5 years. Sevada told us interesting facts about the bridge and Khndzoresk. In the preserved cave house, there is an original moonshine still that still works. Sevada’s homemade product can be bought right there!

In summer, Khndzoresk looks different.

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Because there are many tall trees in the gorge, the height is not felt so strongly.

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Green trees create a cozy atmosphere. On the other hand, they block the view of the whole slope, so the scale of the village is not as noticeable.

If you go down a little, you can find the spring “Inn Manuk” (or “Nine Infants”). There is such a legend: Once enemies attacked Khndzoresk, and women fought alongside the men. Sona died in battle, leaving her nine children orphans. Sona’s father, to immortalize his daughter’s memory, carved a spring in the shape of a woman’s breast. The water flowing between them symbolizes mother’s milk or women’s tears.

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The church has an eco-roof and eco-walls!

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You can walk along the route and climb the mountain.

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To enjoy the views.

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And see the bridge from above.

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I saw a nightingale live for the first time :-)

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To return to the top, you need to climb 527 steps.

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In winter, it felt more atmospheric. In summer, it’s worth planning a whole day for a walk with a picnic. I think it will be very beautiful in spring when the fruit trees bloom. Highly recommended for a visit.

Debarkader on the Dnieper

2025-12-04T19:43:45Z

A debarkader is a floating structure used as a pier, river terminal, recreation base, or even a houseboat.

There’s only one Soviet-era debarkader left in Belarus.

It was built in 1958 at a shipyard in the village of Shatilki. At first, it belonged to the Bobruisk port. In the 1980s, BMZ (the Belarusian Metallurgical Plant in Zhlobin) bought it and used it as a hotel. In 1984, the plant did a major renovation — the finishes and materials from that time have survived to this day. Later, the “Pridneprovskiy” sanatorium acquired the debarkader. In 2010, entrepreneur Sergey Kaigorodov bought it and, together with his family, turned it into a floating hotel.

We decided to ride our bikes there — first taking a train to Rogachev.

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Then cycling about 14 kilometers.

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The debarkader is moored on the Dnieper, in a small bay dug specifically for it.

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It’s not a stationary structure — it floats. So movable gangways lead from the shore to the deck. You can see water marks on the posts showing how high the river rose in spring.

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The deck:

It just so happened that we were the only guests that day.

There were only locals around.

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Here’s what the hallway and a regular room look like (I wasn’t planning to post the video, so didn’t bother with quality):

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More details:

The owner showed us the boiler room. The debarkader used to have heating, though Sergey said the insulation is thin and has settled over time. Back then, no one counted fuel costs — now heating it would be way too expensive. These days, you can stay there only when it’s naturally warm — roughly from May to September.

The owners are keeping the “old vibe.” If the interior were fully renovated, it would lose that feeling of another era. Sure, not everyone may like the dated furniture or the locker-room-style showers. But I think preserving these artifacts of the past gives you a unique experience. At first, your brain tries to compare it with something familiar — but after a while, you realize you’re living something completely new. And that’s awesome.

In general, the place has kept the spirit of the past. It smells of old times — like a Soviet book from a high shelf. Some will love it, others not so much. Everyone will decide for themselves.

Not far from the debarkader, there’s a spot with a stunning view of the Dnieper — probably the steepest riverbank I’ve seen.

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Each spring, the floods erode it more and more.

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Originally, the debarkader stood on this river bend:

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But strong spring floods kept moving it, so a separate bay was dug for it.

Cliff swallows live in the riverbank. It was my first time watching them this close — in the video, you can see them flying into their nests at 4 and 14 seconds.

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A perfect place for a picnic, coffee, and quiet contemplation.

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The debarkader is moored on the grounds of the “Pridneprovskiy” sanatorium. The sanatorium management and the debarkader’s owners have a good relationship — guests are welcome to use the sanatorium’s facilities freely.

The sanatorium itself and its surroundings look quite Soviet, but there are a few cozy spots to relax.

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Or even take a nap.

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In the evening, we went to ask about the treatments — maybe we’d get lucky and sign up for a massage.

But we accidentally ended up at a disco.

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Rumor has it I stood there watching with my mouth open :)

Everything happens right in the foyer of the medical building. Honestly, I’ve been to discos like this — back in kids’ summer camps. My brain short-circuited a bit: the atmosphere brought me back to childhood, but in front of me were adults — or rather, seniors — all dressed up for the occasion :) It was funny and oddly heartwarming.

At sunrise, the birds nesting in the trees outside sing especially loud. Guests love it — the owner, not so much :)

A morning visit from a local:

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Morning coffee:

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Locals come to fish

and snack.

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Before leaving, we filmed some extra shots.

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One last view:

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From our talk with the owner:

The debarkader hasn’t paid back the money invested in its purchase and renovation. Now, all income just goes into maintenance. Sergey says this project isn’t about money — it’s their family’s second home. What matters is that they want to come back to it.

UPD. At the end of summer 2024, I saw it listed online for around $300,000. But in spring 2025, the summer season opened again.

Another coffee with a view of the Dnieper

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And then home.

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Definitely worth visiting.

Svyatopolk-Chetvertinsky Estate in Zheludok

2025-12-04T19:43:46Z

Over the centuries, the estate had many owners — the Polubinskys, Sapiehas, Fratskevich-Radziminskys, and Tyzengauzes. In the early 20th century, it passed to the Svyatopolk-Chetvertinskys as the wife’s dowry. They were the ones who built the mansion in the Art Nouveau and Neo-Baroque styles.

An interesting fact I found online: the Svyatopolk-Chetvertinsky family claimed to be descendants of Prince Rurik — more precisely, of Svyatopolk Izyaslavich, the grandson of Yaroslav the Wise, from the Rurikid dynasty. But modern genetic research couldn’t confirm that lineage.

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Construction began in 1907 and was completed by 1908. That’s not the first big building I’ve seen finished in just a year or two — it always amazes me. The palace was designed by the fashionable Polish-Italian architect Władysław Marconi, who also worked on the Puslovsky Palace in Kossovo.

They say that in the past you could enter the estate grounds freely. Now the entrance fee is 10 Belarusian rubles.

Some of the farm buildings have survived. For example, hidden in the overgrowth, you can spot the stables.

One half is completely abandoned.

The other still houses horses.

Walking around the estate:

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The building still carries traces of its former beauty, but it’s slowly falling apart.

History of the estate:

From 1908 to 1939, it belonged to the Svyatopolk-Chetvertinsky family. After the fall of the Russian Empire, the land became part of Poland, which allowed the family to keep their property. But in 1939, when the territory became part of the Soviet Union, the estate was nationalized. The last owner, Ludwik Svyatopolk-Chetvertinsky, was sent to Auschwitz during World War II, where he died in 1941.

From 1941 to 1944, the building housed a German military hospital.

In the early 1960s, the estate was handed over to an air defense military unit. They opened a club there, and officers’ families might have lived on site.

No one knows what happened to the estate between 1983 and 1991.

In 1992, it was given to a division of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus that worked on agricultural mechanization. Not much real activity took place, but movies and music videos were filmed there. The most famous was the 2010 horror movie “Masakra” — about a were-bear, based on old Belarusian legends. Rumor has it that during filming, the crew started a fire to get the “burned wall” effect — but judging by the marks, it was just black paint:

In 2014, the estate was sold at auction to investors from Moscow. The deal required them to restore the building, but they didn’t. Later, they lost ownership rights, and now the palace stands abandoned again.

Nothing remains of the original interiors.

Except maybe the staircase:

It’s probably the most beautiful part of the palace. Judging by Instagram, people come here just for that staircase.

Anton checking out a windowsill:

Doors:

Sandrik (decorative molding):

Fireplace:

Rosettes:

Traces of the Soviet period:

In summer, swallows nest inside the estate (watch the video with sound):

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They fly around not constantly — only leaving when someone walks in. That’s how they defend their nests from intruders.

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The fact that the estate was built in 1908 made me think — people rarely realize what historical moment they live in. Less than ten years after it was built, the country it stood in ceased to exist. If people had known that, they probably wouldn’t have built a mansion — they’d have sold the land. But when you’re living inside an era, it feels endless. The longer an era seems, the more unshakable it feels.

Although the palace in Zheludok was impressive, the Svyatopolk-Chetvertinsky family didn’t spend much time there — they preferred living in Warsaw. That fact again makes you wonder: who are Belarusians, really?

Traditional selfie:

Worth visiting.