Ancient buildings. The oldest buildings in Russia

Hello 🙂

Every day, walking around the center of St. Petersburg, I pay attention to the sights of our city, which, of course, are familiar to everyone:

Saint Isaac's Cathedral,
Alexandria Pillar,
marble castle,
Engineering lock.

All of them were built a very long time ago, they cannot yet be classified as the oldest buildings, but a lot of time has passed, but they have not lost their attractiveness and beauty.

At the same time, if you just go deeper into the city, you can see buildings that can be called the most ancient buildings in appearance, although they were built several decades ago.

You can even not go far, every day, almost everywhere you can hear about dilapidated housing. It happens even when buying an apartment in a new house, the very next year flaws appear, because of which it is simply dangerous for life to be in these apartments.

I was wondering what the oldest buildings in the world?

The oldest buildings in the world

First of all, I want to express my gratitude to Alexander (his blog), the reader of my "".

It was discovered in 1975; bronze bracelets and ceramic buttons were found in it.

Currently, it has been completely restored and is open to the public. This is one of the symbols and main attractions of the city of Menorca.

The most ancient buildings - 8th place!

Treasury of Atreus or Tomb of Agamemnon, built in ancient city Mycenae (Greece) during the Bronze Age around 1250 BC, which is more than 3250 years ago and ranks 8th in the ranking of the most ancient buildings in the world.

The Treasury of Atreus, due to its grandeur and monumental form, is one of the most impressive monuments preserved from Mycenaean Greece. For example, the lintels over the aisles weigh more than 120 tons!!!

The most ancient buildings - 7th place!

The city of Coral was inhabited approximately between 2600 BC. and 2000 BC. is more than 4600 years ago. And on its territory of 60 hectares there are 19 pyramids.

The most interesting thing is that during the archaeological excavations were found - necklace beads, musical instruments and much more, but there were absolutely no weapons. This means that this one of the most ancient cities was peaceful and most likely its inhabitants were engaged in trade.

The most ancient buildings - 6th place!

The Pyramid of Djoser in Egypt is the oldest stone building in the world.

It was erected before 3000 BC. - this is more than 4700 years ago and consisted of six steps located on top of each other. Overall Height the pyramid of Djoser is 62 meters.

The most ancient buildings - 5th place!

And again the mound. On line 5 of the top 10 ancient buildings in the world, I placed the Hulbjerg barrow, located on the southern tip of Langeland Island.

The most interesting thing is that Hulbjerg Tomb was built 5000 years ago. At the same time, it is completely assembled from 13 stone blocks precisely fitted to each other.

The most ancient buildings - 4th place!

Newgrange is a prehistoric monument under the protection of UNESCO and is located in County Meath, in the eastern part of Ireland, about one kilometer north of the River Boyne.

It was built around 3200 BC - that's over 5,100 years ago.

Today, Newgrange is a popular tourist attraction.

The walls of the passages are made up of large stone slabs, twenty-two of which are on the western side and twenty-one on the east. The height of the stone sides is on average about 1.5 meters in height; decorates many blocks.

The most ancient buildings - 3rd place!

With each line we are getting closer and closer to the first place. And we go deeper and deeper into history.

Monte d'Accoddi was built in the north of Sardinia, between Sassari and Porto Torres around 2700 - 2000 BC - that's about 5,200 years old.

The oldest buildings - 2nd place!

Knap of Howar - on the island of Papa Westray in Orkney (Scotland) approximately 5500 years ago in the period from 3700-2800 years. BC. a manor was built - This is the oldest stone house in Northern Europe.

The walls of the Knap of Howar are still standing and support a 1.6 m high cornice, and the stone furniture has also been preserved, which gives a vivid picture of life in this house. Fireplaces, beds, shelving were found almost intact. Just imagine - more than 5000 years have passed, and they are intact!

The most ancient buildings - 1st place!

So, in fact, we got to the most ancient building of our rating.

And his right is occupied Megalithic temples Malta is a series of prehistoric sites in Malta, seven of which are listed world heritage UNESCO.
Surprisingly, they were built (just think about it!!) more than 5.5 thousand years ago.

Archaeologists believe that these megalithic complexes are the result of local innovations in the process of cultural evolution. The temples were erected between 3600-3000 BC. BC, which were fully operational and in use until 2500 BC.

Victor Rodriguez, an architect from Portugal, also made his house from real stones in 1973, and a huge number of tourists come to see it. True, his stone house was not included in our rating for obvious reasons. You can look at his creation in the article: ""

But that's not all! The world is big and there are still many interesting things ahead, if you don’t want to miss them, then I advise you

Perhaps you can suggest your options in the comments?

As you know, in the list of the most famous ancient sights ancient culture There are only seven miracles. But we mustered up the courage to include three more structures that we think are worthy of your attention. So.

Ajanta or the Ajanta caves is a Buddhist temple and monastery complex located near the village of the same name, 100 km northeast of the city of Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India. It was discovered in 1839. It is a rock in the shape of a horseshoe, in which, starting from the II century BC. e. to the 5th century AD e. 30 (according to other sources 29) caves were carved with columns, Buddha statues and world-famous wall paintings reflecting the life of India of that era. This painting, illustrating Buddhist legends and myths, is not only a work of art, but also a valuable historical source of knowledge about those times.

newgrange


Newgrange - ancient building from huge blocks of stone, one of the largest and oldest corridor tombs, built by man between about 3000 BC. e. - 2500 BC e. (older Great Pyramid at Giza and probably Stonehenge). Located 40.2 km north of the city of Dublin, about one kilometer north of the River Boyne, County Meath, Ireland. The mound is 13.5 meters high and 85 meters in diameter. Ancient people erected it from 200,000 tons of stone, wood and earth. It is a large round mound inside, which is a 19-meter stone corridor leading to the burial chamber. Included in the list of the most mysterious sights of the world.

Derinkuyu


Derinkuyu - ancient multi-level underground city, located under the city of the same name in the province of Nevsehir, Turkey. It was built in the II-I millennium BC. e. Discovered in 1963. The underground city reaches a depth of 60 meters and in ancient times could shelter up to 20 thousand people, along with food and livestock. For centuries, people have been hiding here from nomadic raids, religious persecution and other dangers. Although the underground city of Derinkuyu was intended as a temporary shelter, its scale is impressive. It includes numerous wine cellars, stables, cellars, storerooms, refectories, chapels, numerous ventilation ducts, and a complex network of tunnels and corridors.

7 wonders ancient world


Alexandrian lighthouse- a lighthouse built according to the project of the architect Sostratus of Cnidus approximately in 279-280. BC e. on the island of Pharos, near Alexandria in Egypt, so that the ships could safely pass the reefs on their way to the bay of Alexandria. According to estimates, its light was visible at a distance of 51 km (according to other sources, up to 83 km). It is assumed that the lighthouse of Alexandria was about 115–120 meters high and at that time was the most tall building in the world. In the XIV century, it was completely destroyed by an earthquake, and in its place, by order of the then Sultan of Egypt, Qaitbey (1416/1418-1496), the Qait-Bey fortress was erected, which today is maritime museum.


Colossus of Rhodes - a bronze statue of the ancient Greek god of the Sun - Helios, built between 292 BC. e. - 280 BC e. in the harbor port city Rhodes on the island of the same name in the Aegean Sea in Greece. It was built according to the project of the architect Hares, a student of Lysippus, in honor of the victory of the inhabitants of Rhodes over the ruler of Cyprus, Antigonus I One-eyed, who, together with his son and an army of 40,000 people, unsuccessfully besieged the city in 305 BC. The height of the statue is about 30 meters. She stood on a 10-meter pedestal and weighed, according to various estimates, from 30 to 70 tons. Compared to other wonders of the world, the Colossus of Rhodes "lived" a short life. Approximately 50 years after its creation, it was completely destroyed by an earthquake and melted down.


In fifth place on the list is the "Mausoleum at Halicarnassus" - a tomb built between 353 and 350 BC. e. in Halicarnassus (modern city of Bodrum, Turkey) for King Mausolus of Caria and his wife-sister Artemisia III. Well-known masters were involved in the construction and decoration of the tomb, including the famous sculptors Skopas, Briaxides, Timofeos and Leohar. The tomb of Mausolus was a majestic and unusually shaped building, built of brick and lined inside and out with white marble. The mausoleum in Halicarnassus, 45 meters high, stood for about 19 centuries, but in the 13th century it collapsed from a strong earthquake.


Zeus statue in Olympia - ancient greek statue Zeus, which was located in the center of the temple of the same name in Olympia on the Peloponnese peninsula. It was erected in the 5th century BC by the ancient Greek sculptor and architect Phidias. The statue of the god reached a height of 12-13 meters and was made of wood (according to some sources, from cedar, according to others - from ebony). Details of ivory, gold and precious stones. The circumstances of the possible destruction of the statue are unknown. According to the Byzantine historian George Kedrin, it was transported to Constantinople, where it burned down in a fire in 476.


Temple of Artemis of Ephesus - a Greek temple located in the city of Ephesus, Asia Minor (not far from modern city Selcuk, Turkey). It was dedicated to Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt. The temple was built in the middle of the VI century BC. e, was a rectangular building 105 meters long and 51 meters wide, consisting of marble and wood, and surrounded on all sides by a double row of 127 columns, the height of which was 18 meters. During its entire existence, it was rebuilt three times until July 21, 356 BC. e. was not set on fire by Herostratus - a resident of Ephesus, who dreamed of becoming famous at any cost.


The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, more correctly called the Hanging Gardens of Amitis, is the only one of the seven wonders of the world whose location has not been definitively established. It is assumed that hanging gardens were built around 575 BC. e. in the ancient city of Babylon (near the modern city of Hilla, in Iraq), by King Nebuchadnezzar II, for his wife Amitis, who missed the forests of her homeland. They are a pyramid consisting of four tiers-platforms supported by columns up to 25 m high. On these tiers, fertile land lay with a thick carpet, where seeds of various herbs, flowers, shrubs, and trees from Media were planted. The pyramid resembled an ever-blooming green hill. However, after in 331 BC. e. the troops of Alexander the Great captured Babylon, and the great commander himself died, the city gradually fell into decay. The gardens were abandoned and eventually destroyed.


Pyramid of Cheops - the largest among Egyptian pyramids, the only one of the "Seven Wonders of the World" that has survived to this day, as well as one of the most famous tombs in the world. The pyramid is located on west bank Nile in Egypt on the plateau at Giza, in close proximity to the famous " Great Sphinx". The lion's share of Egyptologists believe that the pyramid was built around 2560 BC. e. and is a tomb Egyptian pharaoh IV dynasty of Khufu (Cheops). It is believed that it was designed by the architect Hemion, the nephew of Cheops. Initially, the pyramid had a height of 146.5 m, but as a result of erosion, today its height is 138.75 m. The total weight of the pyramid is estimated at about 6.25 million tons, the area is ≈ 85,000 m².

Share on social networks

Publications in the Architecture section

The oldest buildings in Russia

From Derbent to Vyborg, from Kaliningrad to the Bashkir village of Chishma. We peer into the depths of history and study together with Sofia Bagdasarova which buildings in Russia break age records.

The most ancient buildings

The most ancient buildings erected by man are, undoubtedly, megalithic structures(menhirs, dolmens and cromlechs). The British Stonehenge is the most famous, however, a considerable number of such structures have been preserved on the territory of Russia. It is impossible to choose the most ancient of them, the chronological framework is too wide, and there are no exact dates. The most famous are the dolmens of the Kuban and the Caucasus, created in the 3rd–2nd millennium BC. e. But you can also find them in Northern Russia(for example, on Solovki), and in Siberia.

The oldest Christian churches

The oldest churches in Russia were built in the Byzantine era, even before the Great Schism of Christianity into Orthodoxy and Catholicism in 1054. They are located in the Black Sea basin, which was ruled by Byzantium. The first of them is the Crimean Church of John the Baptist in Kerch - ancient city Panticapaeum, founded in the 7th century BC. e., later - Byzantine possession. This temple, erected by the Byzantines, stood at least as early as 757 AD. e.

Younger and more provincial in terms of architecture are the temples of the Alanian state, which adopted Christianity in 916 (now Karachay-Cherkessia). These are the Shoaninsky temple (1st half of the 10th century), the Sentinsky temple (967) and the three Zelenchuk churches - St. Nicholas the Wonderworker (916-925), Elijah the Prophet (10th century) and the Life-Giving Trinity (10th century). They are included in .

ancient islamic buildings

In the same southern regions the oldest Islamic religious building also rises. The Juma Mosque stands in Derbent, an important fortress of the Armenian Emirate of the Arab Caliphate ( modern Dagestan). It was built in 733-734.

Islamic architects also built other types of buildings, but due to poor preservation, researchers sometimes wonder what purpose they were intended for. Such is the mausoleum of Tura Khan, which, perhaps, was not a tomb, but a courtroom. It was built in the 14th-15th centuries (or maybe even in the 12th century) near the village of Chishmy in Bashkortostan. Near the city of Bolgar in Tatarstan there is a historical and archaeological complex "Bulgar" - former city Bulgar ulus of the Golden Horde. There are many sights on its territory, including the mysterious Black Chamber (XIV century): either a mausoleum or a resting place for dervishes. Other Bulgar buildings are also attributed to that era.

The oldest ancient Russian church

The most ancient temples Ancient Rus' remained on the lands of Ukraine and Belarus. Thus, the oldest church of this medieval state on the territory modern Russia turned out to be the Hagia Sophia in Novgorod, founded in 1045 and completed five years later.

And here ancient church in Moscow, it already belongs to the post-Mongolian time - this is the Spassky Cathedral of the Spaso-Andronikov Monastery (1420–1425), now the Andrei Rublev Museum.

Petersburg is the same old church- Peter and Paul Cathedral, built in stone in 1712.

The oldest catholic church

The oldest Catholic cathedral in the territory Russian Federation is, apparently, Gothic, built in 1288 in the East Prussian Königsberg (modern Kaliningrad). It is also, most likely, the oldest Lutheran church, since it, like other Catholic churches in those lands, was taken over by Protestants in the 16th century. Today, an Orthodox community is housed within its walls, and the building bears the name of St. Nicholas Church.

Ancient fortifications

The most ancient fortress building, perhaps, is the Crimean Tower of Zeno in ancient Chersonese, which began to be built in the 2nd century BC. e. during the struggle of this policy with the Scythians. She has been rebuilt several times. last time in the tenth century. Although today the tower is almost a ruin, its power still impresses.

In the same 10th century, another fortress tower was erected in the Volga Bulgaria (now Tatarstan), which can be seen in the Devil's Settlement (Elabuga Museum-Reserve). Her modern look- result of reconstruction; the original masonry is preserved only on one side.

And in the north of the country there are fortresses founded by eternal enemies - Novgorodians, Livonian knights and the Swedish military. These are the stone Novgorod citadel (1333), the Pskov "Persy" Krom (1393), the Koporskaya fortress (1237) and

Going to almost any country, you can see architectural buildings that are over 5,000 years old. . The buildings that have survived on our land are sometimes simply amazing. They don't look like buildings. modern architecture people don't live there. Historians wonder which of them is the oldest building in the world? To this day, they cannot give a definite answer to this question. However, there are a couple of cities that should be visited by any traveler, because they contain the history of mankind since the birth of great civilizations. About them we will talk In this article.

The oldest buildings in the world

In India, the oldest building is considered Taj Mahal Palace . The temple was built from white marble Padishah of Shah Jahan in the name of love and devotion to his wife amazing beauty Mumtaz Mahal. Erected in 1631, it combines several styles. A bright element of the palace is a white marble dome. The mausoleum occupies the main place in the palace. Inside it is a huge number of halls, decorated with mosaics. In one of the rooms there is the coffin of the ruler, who, after his death, wished that the body be buried near his beloved.

In the list "The oldest buildings preserved in modern world» historians included Temple of Queen Hatshepsut in Egypt .He is named after a woman who was the only recognized pharaoh. Construction went on from 1482 to 1473 BC. The building turned out to be of magnificent beauty, but, unfortunately, over time it has undergone severe destruction. Some of them occurred due to natural causes - the building is located near a steep cliff. Also damage ancient building was caused at the direction of Thutmose III, whom the queen removed from rule for as much as 15 years. Restoration began in 1961. Today, Polish restorers are assembling the sanctuary bit by bit. The object is located at a considerable distance from the buildings of other kings erected in the Theban necropolis. On the walls are pictures of reliefs that reflect the lifestyle of the inhabitants of the country, the pyramids of that time. The main plot of the reliefs is the story of the birth of the queen. In front of the entrance to the upper terrace there are statues of the queen with a false golden beard - an attribute of male power. In terms of religion ancient egypt, a woman could not take the place of a ruler, because the pharaoh was considered the incarnation of the god Horus, and he is a man. Therefore, the ruler is depicted in this form.

Pyramid of Djoser at Saqqara - the oldest surviving on earth architectural buildings. architectural masterpiece It was created by the ancient Egyptian architect and supreme dignitary of the pharaoh - Imhotep around 2650 BC as a funeral structure for the pharaoh's family.

preserved in Rome Mamertine Dungeon 578 BC, where the offenders were. According to legend, they spent last days life of the apostles Peter and Paul.

Also the oldest mysterious building in the world - Stonehenge in England . Years of construction - from 1100 to 3500 BC. Approximately 80 stones of different breeds, weighing up to 50 tons, were used for the building: dolerite, volcanic tuff. For a long time, no historian could unravel the reason for its appearance. D. Hawkins published a book about this in the 60s. In it, he described how the stone ring, built of stones, was used as an observatory, allowing the British to make astronomical observations and calculations.

The oldest building in Russia

There are many buildings in the Russian Federation that were witnesses historical events. Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin , erected from 1475-1479, was rebuilt by workers under the control of the city planner Aristotle Fioravanti. The building has been well preserved to our times. To this day, services are held here.

Can't be ignored Church of John the Baptist in Kerch , which dates back to the 8th century AD. Located in the very center of the city, the oldest known building in Russia today is the St. Sophia Temple, built by Prince Vladimir in 1050. The monastery of the princess in Vladimir, of the thirteenth century, which was rebuilt many times, experienced ruin, but survived. Walking along the streets of the city of Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, you can see the church built by Yuri Dolgoruky.

10 most ancient buildings in the world:
10) Royal Grave, Sweden.

This unusual tomb was built in Bronze Age, more than 3,000 years ago.

9) Naveta des Tudons, Spain.


This burial site was discovered in 1975. It contains the remains of more than a hundred people, and their valuables are bronze bracelets and ceramic buttons. The tomb was built over 3,200 years ago.

8) Treasury of Atreus, Greece.


This tomb was built in the Bronze Age, over 3250 years ago. For more than a thousand years, it has been the owner of the highest and widest dome in the world. But that was before the construction of the Pantheon.

7) Caral, Peru.


This is a large ancient settlement in Peru, built over 4600 years ago. Currently, Caral is considered the oldest city In South America.

6) Pyramid of Djoser, Egypt.


The pyramid was built as the tomb of Pharaoh Djoser over 4700 years ago. The tomb is the oldest stone building in the world.

5) Hulbjerg Jættestue, Denmark.

The tomb was built 5000 years ago. It contains the remains of 400 people, one of which served as an example of early dental work.

4) Ireland.


A prehistoric monument, as well as the oldest building in Ireland, built about 5,100 years ago.

3) Monte d'Accoddi, Italy.


Built somewhere between 5,200-4,800 years ago. This amazingly preserved building was either a temple or an altar.

2) Knap of Howar, Scotland.


It was originally part of the estate. Today, this building is considered the oldest stone house in Europe. Built about 5500 years ago.

1) Megalithic Temples of Malta.


These buildings were used as religious temples, and are the oldest of their kind in the world. They were built over 5500 years ago.