The Old English Court the 21st century. Monday morning (2024) Photography by Ekaterina Kastalskaya

This photo was taken by photographer Ekaterina Kastalskaya on March 4, 2024 on Kodak Gold ISO 200 color film in Zaryadye Park in Moscow.

In the photo we can see one of the oldest buildings in Moscow, the 16th century English Court Chambers. The only buildings in Moscow older than this building are the Palace of the Facets of the Moscow Kremlin, built in the late 15th century, and the Chambers of the Romanov Boyars on Varvarka Street.

The white stone dwelling chambers were built in the 1510s. This period saw the emergence of diplomatic communication between Russia and England, which was particularly strong during the reigns of Ivan the Terrible and Queen Elizabeth I Tudor.

The building was created in the style of Old Russian architecture. According to the main version of historians, the master was Aleviz Fryazin. The Italian was invited to Russia by Tsar Ivan III to build Moscow churches.

The old English Court was considered lost until 1968. Behind the later changes, it was discerned by the restorer Peter Baranovsky. During the study of the library he found out that the basis of the building is an early construction of the XVI-XVII centuries. Thanks to him, in the early 70s, the appearance of the building was brought as close to the original as possible.

Now there is a museum there, the entrance to which is from the side of the Zaryadye Park.

Behind the building of the Old English Court across Varvarka Street we see the Gostiny Dvor — the largest commercial building in Moscow at the end of the XVIII - beginning of the XIX century. Gostiny Dvor acquired its modern look with a transparent roof in the center in the 2000s after restoration.

Related themes

Analog Color Film PhotoEurope CityHistorical ArchitecturePast And PresentMoscow Spring