Hunter house

The Hunter”s house is a mansion located in Gomel not far from the Palace and Park Ensemble. This is an architectural monument of the first half of the XIX century. Once it was the summer residence of Duke Rumyantsev. Today it is a museum of history of Gomel.

The mansion was built in 1820 in Gomel by the order of Nikolai Rumyantsev and designed by the architect Ivan Diachkov. It is located at the end of the modern Pushkin street. The building is better known as a hunter”s house, though Rumyantsev was not fond of hunting.

The Hunter”s house is a rectangular one-storyed wooden structure, faced with brick and plastered. The main facade of the house is turned to the city. At its center there is a 6-columned portico of the Doric order with a terrace. The side columns are double. As a result the middle part with the main entrance of the building stands out. There is the second floor above the portico. It consists of mezzanine floor with a balcony, access to which is decorated with a large semicircular arch with sculpted panels. There is a monument to Alexander Pushkin near the Hunter”s house.

Duke Rumyantsev didn”t have any heirs. After his death in the middle of the XIX century the building became the property of the noble family of Kruszewsky. They had lived in the Hunter”s house until the revolution of 1917. During the Soviet period of time the first Gomel radio station was located inside the building. Later the Extraordinary Commission was in session there.

Since February 2009 the Hunter”s house has been a separate museum. The interiors of the noble mansion were reconstructed. Today there are 7 exhibition halls in the Hunter”s house. You can visit a small living room and a dining room, to see the furniture and household items that once belonged to Duke Rumyantsev: an amazing collection of watches, mirrors and paintings.

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