Did ‘Plyushkin’ exist in real life?
The hero of Nikolai Gogol's ‘Dead Souls’, landowner Stepan Alexandrovich Plyushkin, was a rare miser, wore a greasy, tattered robe and dragged everything he saw into the house - even an old bucket or an iron nail.
Russia Beyond > CultureTOP 10 Soviet detective movies you can watch free ONLINE
Brave Soviet police, cunning spies and good old detective mysteries. We’ve compiled a short list of the main detective movies made in the USSR, which we definitely recommend you watch!
Russia Beyond > CultureWhat do you mean by ‘inside out’ (‘shivorot-navyvorot’)?
“He has everything inside out!” is an emotional way to talk about someone who has everything going wrong, the other way around. If someone comes in wearing his clothes inside out, you can also say that he is wearing everything inside out. However, this expression was not always so harmless.
Russia Beyond > Culture10 iconic female characters in Soviet cinema (PHOTOS)
These heroines are not only remembered and loved by audiences in the USSR, they are still known and quoted today!
Russia Beyond > CultureDid you know there are 3 Churches on the Spilled Blood in Russia?
Three churches with the same name were all built on the sites where members of the royal family died.
Russia Beyond > CultureWhy did the painting ‘Matchmaking of the Major’ make the public laugh?
As soon as they saw the painting by Pavel Fedotov, visitors to the exhibition at the Academy of Arts began to smile widely and some were unable to contain their laughter. And again and again they came to look at it. Why?
Russia Beyond > CultureWild steppe & life of nomads in Russian art (PICS)
For centuries, the territory of the former Russian Empire was inhabited by nomadic Asian peoples. And their descendants, such as the Kalmyks (the only Buddhists in Europe), still live in modern Russia.
Russia Beyond > Culture10 iconic male characters from Soviet movies
These characters pop into the mind of any Russian when any of these movies are mentioned — and vice versa. While many of the phrases said by the characters are often quoted in everyday life.
Russia Beyond > CultureThe 5 highest-grossing Russian World War II movies
How did Lyudmila Pavlyuchenko become the most successful female sniper in history? How did Soviet women pilots fight against Luftwaffe aces? How did one Soviet commander save 200 Jews from death? Watch these movies and find out!
Russia Beyond > CultureBanksy’s new work reminiscent of a 2013 Moscow graffiti
England's most famous graffiti artist has, in fact, wittingly or not, repeated the idea of a Russian street artist nicknamed ‘0331c’.
Russia Beyond > Culture10 Soviet spy movies you can watch online for FREE
Chases, conspiracies, covert spies - it's impossible to tear yourself away from these movies. We’ve put together a list of the most interesting spy dramas from the Soviet era.
Russia Beyond > CultureRussian Imperial Army in the paintings of artists
In the first quarter of the 18th century, through the efforts of Tsar Peter the Great, a regular army was created in Russia. One of the most powerful on the European continent, it existed until the collapse of the Russian Empire itself in 1917.
Russia Beyond > Culture10 of the Russian North’s most beautiful wooden churches (PHOTOS)
Photographer Alexander Moiseyev spent many years exploring the vanishing beauty of remote northern villages. The result of his work is a large photo book. We have selected a few shots of the Christian wooden architecture.
Russia Beyond > Culture10 knitted works by contemporary Russian artists (PICS)
Contemporary art has gone far beyond the boundaries of drawing. A vast variety of materials and forms are now used. One of the latest trends is working with fabrics and embroidery. Take a look at what's going on.
Russia Beyond > Culture9 museums & centers in St. Petersburg that you can visit for FREE
Walk around the fortress - the same age as the city - and see a unique panel map of the USSR made of minerals and semi-precious stones or look into the most democratic gallery of the city - for free! We reveal where you won't need to buy entrance tickets in the northern capital.
Russia Beyond > Culture5 reasons to watch ‘Onegin’, Russia’s newest movie adaptation of Pushkin’s novel
Every Russian knows a story about Eugene Onegin and Tatiana, but the iconic novel is extremely difficult to stage and it's only ever been adapted to the screen a few times by daring people. So, many Russians went to see it in the cinema, either to marvel at it or to tear it to shreds!
Russia Beyond > CultureWhy did Spanish sculptor Alberto Sanchez leave for the USSR?
Visitors to Madrid's Queen Sofia Museum pass by a majestic sculpture at the entrance - ‘The Way of the Spanish People Leading to the Star’. Its author, Alberto Sanchez, decided to go to the Soviet Union in 1938 and ended up staying there until the end of his life.
Russia Beyond > CultureHow did Pushkin get the marriage crowns of Catherine II?
On a cold March 2, 1831, a crowd assembled at the Church of the Great Ascension at the Nikitsky Gate: Everyone wanted to see the wedding of Alexander Pushkin and the first Moscow beauty Natalia Goncharova. But, only relatives and close friends were allowed inside.
Russia Beyond > Culture10 museums & centers in Moscow, which you can visit for FREE
We’ve chosen the most interesting museums and galleries of the Russian capital, where you do not need to buy tickets.
Russia Beyond > Culture5 reasons to read ‘Eugene Onegin’, Pushkin’s novel in verse
Every Russian remembers at least a few lines from this work written 200 years ago by heart and can tell you the overall plot. Why? What’s so special about this particular novel?
Russia Beyond > CultureKador Ben-Salim: How a guy from Morocco made it in Soviet cinema (PHOTOS)
The life story of this man begs for the big screen: an acrobat from Morocco, who then became a circus performer, a Red Army soldier and the first Soviet dark-skinned actor. Below, we recount his extraordinary adventures in the USSR.
Russia Beyond > Culture