the mythical animals decorating the capital’s buildings / News / Moscow City Web Site

Among the architectural monuments of Moscow are many buildings with animal motifs. In addition to the lions that typically decorate neo-Classical buildings, many other real or mythical animals can be seen.

These can be seen on the facades of the building of the Rossiya Insurance Company at 6/1 Sretensky Boulevard, buildings 1, 2, the former apartment building of the Church of the Trinity on Gryazekh at 14 Chistoprudny Boulevard, building 3, Zinaida Morozova’s mansion at 17 Ulitsa Spiridonovka, building 1, Alexei Morozov’s urban estate at 21 Podsosensky Pereulok, building 1, and Nikolai Faleyev’s house at 11 Gagarinsky Pereulok.

“As you are walking around Moscow, you can see images of various creatures, real and mythical, on the facades of historical buildings. Alongside the classic lions, birds, elephants and snakes, fantastic creatures including winged lions, gargoyles, griffins, chimeras and many others can be seen on Moscow’s buildings. Moscow takes great care of these decorative elements, which are an integral part of the city’s cultural heritage sites, and they are repaired during restoration work,” said the head of the Moscow Department of Cultural Heritage Alexei Emelyanov.

Building of the Rossiya Insurance Company

The building of the Rossiya Insurance Company, a historic monument house, is a complex of two buildings occupying a large part of Sretensky Boulevard. The building, which was technically advanced for its time, was erected in 1899–1902 and decorated with a large number of architectural details, including spires, turrets and bay windows. Its unusual facades combine several different architectural styles, among them Renaissance, Art Nouveau and Gothic.

The decorative elements on the building include crocodiles and snakes, chimeras with elephant trunks, elephants playing the role of atlantes, parrots under the balcony and griffins, a sea monster, and birds of prey reminiscent of the gargoyles on Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. Above them all is a crouching lion, and above the round window under the tower is a pelican.

Under one bay window there are cast-iron bats, and under another is a salamander with red eyes, a symbol of the insurance industry. Legend has it that the salamander is unharmed by fire, and providing fire coverage was the main business of an insurance company back then. In addition to fantastic animals, the building is decorated with figures of ancient philosophers, winged women, heads of maidens with curly hair and cupids.

The restoration of the facades, roof and common areas of the Insurance Community House was completed in 2025. Restored brickwork, basement. The sculptural decoration on the mezzanine level required great attention, as it had suffered serious damage and parts had been lost. During the works, the specialists restored the metal elements of the building: the tower and spire, sculptures, and decorations on the lower surfaces of balconies and on the facades of the building.

“The apartment building of the Rossiya Insurance Company is one of the most outstanding buildings on the Boulevard Ring. Fabulous animals decorate the facade of the building, giving this architectural monument a resemblance to a real ancient castle and creating a unique aesthetic. The restoration of the stucco decoration demanded a great deal of skill on the part of the professionals,” said Pavel Ryabonenko, Deputy Director General of Moscow’s Capital Renovation Fund.

A house with fantastic animals

As one turns from Ulitsa Pokrovka to Chistoprudny Boulevard, one can almost immediately see the apartment building of the Church of the Trinity on Gryazekh. The third and fourth floors of the building are covered with zoomorphic patterns. The bas-reliefs depicting fantastic animals were made by the Murava Art Artel, based on sketches by the artist Sergei Vashkov, a pupil of the famous Viktor Vasnetsov.

Sergei Vashkov was inspired by the bas-reliefs of the Dmitrievsky Cathedral in Vladimir. The main theme of the decoration of this building is the Old Russian motifs from the buildings in Vladimir.

In 2024, the facades as well as the entrances to the historic building were restored as part of the major renovation of the capital’s housing stock. 

Zinaida Morozova’s mansion

The mansion at 17 Ulitsa Spiridonovka was built on the site of the old Aksakov estate by the famous philanthropist Savva Morozov for his wife Zinaida. To create the project he turned to the then young architect Fyodor Shechtel, who built a building resembling a medieval castle in the English Gothic style. It was this work that launched the architect’s illustrious career and brought him wealthy clients. Fyodor Shechtel invited the artist Mikhail Vrubel to work on the decoration of the mansion.

Morozova’s mansion does not look like typical 19th century buildings. Its pointed spires, gargoyles on the drainpipes and on the edges of terraces, and pointed-arch windows all combine to what looks like a European medieval castle in the center of Moscow. The hallmark of the house is a two-story tower, or donjon. The facades of the house are adorned with turrets, pointed arch windows, decorative mascarons and chimeras, and animal faces on the perimeter railings. The interiors of the mansion abound with stylized grotesque creatures reminiscent of those from a medieval bestiary: gnomes, dragons and chimeras. On the bronze railing of the staircase leading to the anteroom, a serpent and a dog are fighting each other.

In 1929, the house was occupied by the People’s Commissariat of Foreign Affairs. Since then, the historic building has housed the House of Receptions of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The successful completion of the restoration work received accolades within the professional community. Zinaida Morozova’s mansion won the Moscow Restoration 2021 competition.

The main house of the Alexei Morozov city estate

The main house of the Morozov estate, designed by Fyodor Shechtel is one of the most striking examples of eclecticism in the capital. The central part of the main facade is dominated by the front entrance with the second floor balcony protruding above it, which rests on the shoulders of mighty atlantes. Inside the building is an Egyptian lobby with a pair of lotus-shaped columns representing the gate of the god Ra, a rocaille drawing room, and a double-height Gothic study, among other rooms. The mirror in the lobby is framed by colorful paintings in an ancient Egyptian style.

At the foot of the carved staircase leading to Alexei Morozov’s office are a dwarf and a wide-eyed dragon perched on a pillar. Under the stairs is a fireplace surmounted with a heraldic design and the carved heads of sinners, and supported by brilliant white gargoyles.

Work is now underway here to restore the facades.

Nikolai Faleyev’s house

The Faleyev House is a one-story mansion in Gagarinsky Pereulok, otherwise known as “the house with gargoyles.” Because of the symbols above the entrance, the building is popularly associated with the Masonic past of its owners and the secret meetings of Freemasons. In fact, it has nothing to do with Freemasonry.

The mansion has features of the Renaissance and Empire styles, and even some Baroque elements. The roof of the house is decorated with two figures of griffins, whose eyes are directed in different directions of the pereulok, and between the high windows there are two small gargoyles. Flags were inserted into the mouths of these creatures on holidays. Figures of winged lions can be seen on the corners of the house.

The designer and owner of the house, Nikolai Faleyev, also designed the Andrei Gagarin apartment building on Varsonofievsky Pereulok, the state wine warehouses on Ulitsa Volochaevskaya, the Ermakovsky technical school on Prechistenskaya Embankment, and the Faleyev apartment building in Milyutinsky Pereulok. Most of his buildings are in the Eclectic style.