Shaped like the Order of the Patriotic War

We have found out what the Museum of Glory of Mogilev Region on the legendary Buinichi Field will look like

A grandiose construction is currently underway at the place that is significant for all Belarusians, where the Red Army and the people’s militia held back the onslaught of German fascists for 23 days in July 1941. In some time, the Museum of Glory of Mogilev Region will open its doors here. It will feature information not only about the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, but also about the pre-war and post-war life of the region, as well as its modern achievements.

Construction of the Museum of Glory of Mogilev Region underway           

Place that will unite generations

The idea of creating the Museum of Glory on the Buinichi Field belongs to veterans, researchers, and the public. The construction kicked off in July last year, and today the museum has already acquired real outlines. They are visible even from the busy highway to Bobruisk — the museum will be shaped like the Order of the Patriotic War 1st degree: in 1980, Mogilev was awarded it for the courage and fortitude shown by the city’s residents.
“According to the architects’ idea, the three-story building is located at an angle of 10 degrees relative to the ground plane. This way, the stylised image of the order is more visible,” clarified Dmitry Khukhryakov, First Deputy Director — Chief Engineer at the Capital Construction Department of the Mogilev City Executive Committee. “The museum is being built at the expense of the regional budget, partly — the budget of the Union State and donations from citizens. A total of Br51m have already been spent. The Museum of Glory is our common history, our contribution to the future. Many people know that bloody battles took place on the Buinichi Field at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, that our soldiers stopped the enemy’s offensive here. Yet, our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren should also remember this. The museum will become a place that will unite generations. It is gratifying that many young people are involved in the construction.” 

‘This is our contribution to history’ 

On the day of our visit, about 160 people were working at the construction site. Some were plastering the walls, while others were landscaping the adjacent territory, where the Walk of Fame, the Honours Board, and parking lots will appear in the future. 
The general contractor for the facility is Promzhilstroy OJSC. Nikolai Poddubtsev, the head of the electrical installation section at the enterprise, is monitoring his workers wiring the building, “There are 14 people in my team, and everyone is giving it their all, understanding how significant this facility is. In order to meet the deadline, we work non-stop, without days off, and if necessary, we stay until seven or eight in the evening.”
Nikolai is convinced that the Museum of Glory will be visited not only by Belarusians, but also by residents of other countries. To make the complex modern and beautiful, the façade will be equipped with lighting. The first and second floors in the central part of the building — the one shaped like a star — will house exhibition halls. The side parts will have an exhibition and assembly hall for 200 people, a guest reception room, two conference halls, administrative offices, a workshop. The third floor will be allocated for technical rooms. In the exhibition hall-to-be, we find Sergei Subbotin, the head of the finishing works section, “We have a large team consisting of 42 people, of which 60 percent are young people. They try so hard — it’s a pleasure to watch.” 
Plasterer Yekaterina Pukhovskaya deftly wields a spatula, preparing the walls for finishing, “Today we are plastering them, and then we will do painting. I want to do everything perfectly. I am not the first year in construction. The site on the Buinichi Field is, perhaps, the most important for me. When I think that this is my contribution to preserving the truth about the war, it gives me goosebumps.”

What exhibits will tell us  

Although the construction is not yet finished, work is already underway to install exhibition zones and installations. The Art Combine of the Belarusian Union of Artists public association and the Mogilev Regional Museum of Local History named after Ye. R. Romanov, which developed a scientific project with the help of historians, researchers and reenactors, are responsible for filling the museum with exhibits. “Presumably there will be 16 exhibition zones, in particular Pre-war Mogilev. On the Eve of..., Military Formations and Their Participation in Defence of Mogilev and Dnieper Line, Battle on Buinichi Field. Legendary 388th Rifle Regiment of Semyon Kutepov,” listed Aleksandra Burakova, Deputy Director at the Mogilev Regional Museum of Local History. “The new museum will be interactive, fitted with multimedia equipment, thanks to which visitors will be able to walk in virtual reality through the pre-war Gorky Park, or find themselves in Mogilev in 1940 and buy a ticket to a show at the Rodina cinema. The effect of immersion in the past will be achieved through projections and video clips on the walls.” 
Visitors will be able to find themselves not only in peaceful pre-war Mogilev, but also on the road with refugees at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, and even in the epicentre of the battle on the Buinichi Field. They will be able to see the feat of pilot Nikolai Terekhin, who rammed two German Junkers aircraft in the sky over Mogilev on July 10th, 1941, to try on the role of a nurse providing first aid to a wounded man, or front-line photojournalist Pavel Troshkin. “We will combine modern forms of presentation of the material with classical ones,” emphasised Aleksandra Burakova. “We will present in the museum the personal belongings of Semyon Kutepov, given by his relatives, as well as documents and photographs of other participants in the defence, underground fighters, partisans, and items from excavations. Items from personal archives, donated by fellow countrymen, will worthily complement the exhibition — for example, a towel from Daniil Serikov, a participant in the Great Patriotic War. Embroidered by his wife, it became a talisman for him — the soldier returned home from the front with it. Recently, relatives of Belarusian poet Pyotr Prikhodko gave us his war diaries and handwritten books. He took part in the liberation of Mogilev. Visitors to the museum will also see a diorama of the battle on the Buinichi Field, where our heroes knocked out 39 German tanks in one battle, where Konstantin Simonov saw the future Victory.”

TO THE POINT 

The Viccru (Victoria cruenta) Mogilev regional historical and patriotic club has come forward with the initiative to install a memorial sign at the site where, during the 23-day heroic defence of Mogilev, the Red Army soldiers took the first battle with the enemy. “Although the chronological framework — July 3rd—26th, 1941 — has already firmly entered the history of the defence of Mogilev, until recently it was not known for sure where exactly the defence began. Only thanks to active archival research and search work did it become clear that it was on the distant approaches to the city — in Kirov District. To the right of the Mogilev — Bobruisk highway, about 200 metres from the Veprinka River,” specified Nikolai Borisenko, the head of the club. “The memorial sign will symbolise the beginning of the heroic defence of Mogilev fortress, as German fascists referred to our city in their documents, noting the fortitude and tenacity of Soviet soldiers.”
The sketch of the future memorial sign has already been prepared by Minsk architects. The composition is based on the image of crossed blades, marking the moment of parrying the blow — the attacking enemy blade breaks. This solution will succinctly and symbolically convey the essence of the event to which the monument is dedicated. The stele will also contain accompanying texts. One of them is Dedicated to Defenders of Mogilev — Living and Dead. The initiators of the sign’s installation are convinced that in the year of the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War, it will harmonise with the Museum of Glory on the Buinichi Field and logically connect into one whole the memorial sites dedicated to the heroic defence of Mogilev.  

By Olga Kislyak

Photos by Andrei Sazonov