Ukraine’s capital has its fair share of Soviet-era crumbling, concrete catastrophes – the works of architects who obviously hated life – but Kyiv also boasts some fine architecture that’s well worth taking a look at on an afternoon off. The buildings in this walking tour represent some of the best examples of works from what was arguably Kyiv’s architectural heyday – the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Distance: 5.5 kilometers approx.
Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
The tour starts on Andriyivskiy Uzviz, one of Kyiv’s most famous streets. Slightly more than mid-way up from the start of the street on the corner of Kontraktova Ploshcha in the city’s Podil district, there is the The Castle of Richard the Lionheart, at 15 Andriyivski Uzviz.
The castle (despite the name, the building has nothing to do with the late 12th century king of England) is one of the main architectural attractions on Andriyivskiy Uzviz, towering above the tourist-filled street. Its architect, Dmytro Orlov, borrowed ideas for the exterior design from a house that caught his attention in St. Petersburg, Russia. After its construction was completed in 1904, the castle caught a fire for reasons unknown. From then on, the building has had a bad reputation. Nobody could stay in it for too long: people said that at night they heard footsteps and children’s cries, as if the building was haunted. Later it turned out that eggshells stuck in a chimney were making these sounds, and when they were removed the “cries” stopped. But rumors and legends around the castle continue to spread, and it remains empty to this day.
Ascending Andriyivskiy Uzviz, we pass another famous Kyiv landmark, St. Andrew’s Church. Next, walk along Volodymyr Street, passing through Sophivska Ploshcha, and continue down the road until it meets Prorizna Street. Turning right, walk up Yaroslaviv Val for about 100 meters, and there we find The Castle of Baron Steingel, at 1 Yaroslaviv Val.
Kyiv’s ‘castles’ and architectural masterpieces grace city streets
This imposing bright building was built by the architect Nikolay Dobachevsky at the end of the 19th century. Despite the name of the castle, Baron Steingel actually never lived there, residing next door instead; but the castle is so impressive that people at the time were sure it must belong to the baron. Over the years many other famous people have been said to have lived in the building: including barons and rich merchants. But one thing is definitely true: the historic Yaroslaviv Val street would not be the same without this pearl of architecture. The tall, slender building stands out from the two-story buildings next to it, and two sculptures buttress the second-floor balcony over the arched access way to the rear courtyard. The main entryway features Corinthian columns.
Heading back down Prorizna Street until it reaches Kreshchatyk, turn left, and head along Kyiv’s famous central street, past Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square), to European Square. Turn right onto Hrushevskoho St. and walk along it to the entrance to the Valeriy Lobanovskyi Dynamo Stadium, opposite which is a road that leads uphill to the Kyiv Academic Puppet Theatre, at 1a Hrushevskoho St.
From the outside, the theatre looks rather like a fairytale castle, and inside its three floors each contain various attractions and surprises, such as an antique dolls exhibition, a children’s café, two theatre halls and cartoon paintings on the walls – a great place for kids. The grounds around the theatre have sculptures of cartoon characters and a Thumbelina-themed musical fountain. Despite Kyiv Academic Puppet Theatre being the oldest puppet theatre in Ukraine (established in 1927), it didn’t have a permanent home until the “castle” was built and gifted to the establishment in late 2005, which makes it the youngest building in our tour.
Descending back down the hill to Hrushevskoho St., continue walking away from European Square, up the hill, and take a right turn opposite the neo-classical, Stalin-era Verkhovna Rada building, onto Sadova St. Then walk down Sadova St. until its end, and turn right to Instytutska St., where after a short 140 meter walk, there is the building of the National bank of Ukraine, at 9 Instytutska St.
The National Bank of Ukraine’s current home is a luxurious mixture of gothic and renaissance styles in burgundy and beige. Construction started in 1902 to a design by Kyiv architect Oleksandr Kobelev, who won a competition to design the building. Oleksandr Verbitskyi designed the building’s main façade, and Italian sculptor Emilio Sala created its interior decorations. Two more floors were added to the building, taking it to four floors, in 1933 when Ukraine was preparing to change its capital from Kharkiv to Kyiv.
Continue walking along Instytutska Street for another minute and then take the first turn left to Bankova St., where the House with Chimaeras is located on the right, at 10 Bankova st. On a weekday, it is best to skip this building, as access to it is only open on weekends; and for a most extensive view, book a tour of it in advance at www.primetour.ua.
House with Chimaeras is one of the most famous buildings in Kyiv, located in the very heart of Ukraine’s capital. But at the time of its construction in 1902-1903, the site was unkempt and completely unsuitable for building, being on a steep slope, which caused problems for its architect, Vladyslav Gorodetsky.
Despite the difficulties, Gorodetsky managed to build a spectacular landmark that retains its beauty and significance to this day, serving as a presidential residence for official ceremonies. The building has three floors on one side, and six on the other. Its walls display concrete heads of rhinos, giraffes, lions, crocodiles, antelopes and drainpipes in the form of elephant trunks; on its roof there are statues of huge frogs, sea monsters and nymphs with chains instead of hair.
Next, head back to Instytutska St. and turn right, passing the National Bank of Ukraine again until Instytutska meets Shovkovychna St. Then turn right and walk along Shovkovychna for 5 minutes to the “Pink Castle” of Baron Ikskul-Gildenband on the left at 19 Shovkovychna st.
The building is located next to another landmark, the “Chocolate house” on Shovkovychna street. The “Pink Castle” was built in 1891 using architect Mykola Vyshnevsky’s project and belonged to the Ikskul-Gildenband family. At that time it consisted of six large flats, some of which were rented out. During the Soviet era, the building was nationalised and converted into communal apartments building where academics such as poet and writer Mykola Bazhan and economist Pavlo Pershyn resided. Over the years, the building fell into disrepair, and it went through a massive renovation in the 2000s. Nowadays the “Pink Castle” of Baron Ikskul-Gildenband has regained its original look and is home to a private company.
