Kalininsky District: Museums, Memorial Sites and Festivals

In Turginovo stands a Russian Orthodox brick church with five domes and four pillars. Together with museums, seasonal festivals and memorial sites, it shows the many different ways to explore culture and history in Kalininsky District. A natural monument and rural attractions round out these themes.

Church and Musical History

The Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God combines Neoclassical architecture with elements of the Pseudo-Russian style. Its features also include a multi-tiered bell tower with a spire. The church was built from 1824 to 1835, and an extension followed from 1876 to 1887. These two construction phases give a visit a historical context without reducing the architecture to a single period.

At the S. Ya. Lemeshev Folk Museum in Knyazevo, five halls with 15 exhibition areas are devoted to the singer’s childhood and youth, his family, his first caregivers and teachers, and his years of training and creative work. The subjects span his early life through his artistic career.

The collection includes family photographs, a furniture ensemble from the Kvashnin family home, and works by students and teachers. Other items evoke the world of the stage: these include posters, set designs and theater programs, as well as the score of Tchaikovsky’s opera “Eugene Onegin” and Lensky’s stage costume, from one of Lemeshev’s favorite roles.

Every year, in midsummer on the singer’s birthday, the traditional Lemeshev Song Festival is held there. Amateur ensembles, professional artists and winners of international competitions gather in his honor. The event connects music with the life story explored by the exhibition in Knyazevo.

Estate History and Seasonal Festivals

The exhibition at the V. A. Serov House-Museum is housed in four rooms in the home of Valerian Dmitrievich Derviz, the estate owner’s brother. It covers the history of the estate, its owners and guests, and its cultural life. One section is devoted to V. A. Serov’s stay at the estate and the works he created there.

Every winter, Christmas and Maslenitsa celebrations are held in the museum park at Domotkanovo. The program includes folk games and entertainment, concerts and theatrical performances. The “Lilac Domotkanovo” festival has a different seasonal connection: it takes place in late May and is closely linked to the history of the estate.

The V. A. Serov Museum in Emmaus offers another focus on the artist. Its collection includes personal belongings, rare photographs and documents revealing less familiar aspects of Serov’s life, as well as original paintings. The House-Museum exhibition in four rooms and the collection in Emmaus thus offer different ways to explore Serov and his work.

Memorial Sites and Nature

The Mednoe Memorial Complex includes a Polish soldiers’ cemetery. Its features include a memorial wall with a bell, cast-iron plaques bearing the names of the deceased, and metal crosses over 25 mass graves. The grounds of the Kalinin Front Museum also contain a mass grave and military equipment; the exhibition covers eleven major military operations.

The first completed phase of a project at the Kalinin Front Museum is also marked by specific memorial sites: a Walk of Remembrance was laid out and four Russian burial sites were created. Distinguishing between the exhibition, the features of the grounds and this first project phase helps put the different forms of remembrance into context.

Another focus is the Akulkina Grove protected area, an active natural monument of regional significance covering 4.5 hectares. It lies east of the village of Brednevo in the Turginovskoye rural settlement in Kalininsky District, Tver Oblast. This clearly defined natural area thus joins churches, museums and memorial sites as part of the district’s profile.

Farm Experiences and Regional Themes

In Mednoe, La Fattoria Little Italy offers cheese-making workshops and tastings of its own farm products at the restaurant. These include cheese, meat, vegetables and bread. Check with the farm for current availability before adding these experiences to your plans.

At the Ivanovka farm in Davydovo, visitor activities include picnics, fishing, making your own gifts and relaxing outdoors. Confirm current arrangements with the farm in advance. The “House of the Goat” on the farm explores why residents of the region are called “Tver Goats,” and also focuses on the goat’s characteristics and related traditions and festivals.

Discover more destinations: Andreapolsky District, Kimrskiy rayon, Konakovskiy rayon, Udomelskiy rayon, Sonkovskiy rayon, Sandovskiy rayon, Molokovsky District, Vyshnevolotskiy rayon.

Return to the regional travel overview: Tver Oblast.