The gateway to the city of Minsk is more than just a landmark of Belarus. It is a symbol of the capital, its calling card
While travelling around the glorious city of Minsk, be sure to visit Railway Station Square, where the “twin towers” – the gates of the city of Minsk – proudly stand! This place is the landmark of the city, as it’s the first unique architectural object which is seen by travelers when they arrive to Minsk by train.
Minsk city gates are two symmetrical tall towers in the Stalin classicism (empire) style. The style combines elements of baroque, late classicism, and art deco. All buildings in the Stalinist Empire style are majestic, luxurious, even pompous. The Minsk Gate makes an indelible impression in the evening thanks to its interesting and thoughtful illumination.
The architect of this project is Boris Rubanenko from Leningrad. In the period from 1947 to 1952 the architect carried out a complete reconstruction of the Privokzalniy area, within the framework of which the Minsk gate was to become a ceremonial symbol of Privokzalnaya square and the whole city in general. However, the history of the Minsk Gate dates back two years before construction began – in 1945 a series of archaeological excavations were carried out prior to the construction of the Nemiga metro in the entire city of Minsk. At that time researchers discovered the remains of an old wooden gate. That’s where they decided to erect the Minsk “twin towers”. It is interesting that the prototype of Minsk wooden gate was Golden gate of Yaroslav in Kiev. The Minsk gate was designed on five-storey houses, and during the Soviet times it was occupied by the railway employees.
The thing is that originally the architect and the decorators had to create a monument as national in form as possible. That’s why the mythical gates of Minsk used to look different from what we see today. For instance, the upper tiers were crowned with spires along the perimeter, the second tier was lined with tall concrete pinnacles, while the first tier was decorated with four sculptural compositions in each tower. Huge sculptures of a soldier, a worker, a collective farmer and an engineer, 3.5 metres high, were set at a height of 30 metres. Mascarons and cartouches depicting Belarusian flowers, ornaments from the Slutsk belts and even bison were scattered in various parts of the tower.
Now the right tower bears the coat of arms of the former Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic. On the left tower you’ll see the biggest German clock in the country, 3.5 metres in diameter on the dial and 1.69 metres long on the minute hand. The clock is the century-old war trophy that Belarus received from Germany during World War II. At the height of 30 metres you can see the majestic sculptures of a worker, a collective farmer, an engineer and a soldier placed along the perimeter of each tower. It is true that the sculptures were temporarily dismantled in the 70s due to destruction, but they were rebuilt later using a more durable material – silumin.
On one of the towers is the largest clock in Belarus. The diameter of the clock face is over 3.5 metres! The clock was made more than a hundred years ago in Germany and came to Belarus as a war trophy after the Great Patriotic War. (On the other tower is the emblem of the former BSSR). Up until the end of the twentieth century, the hands of the clock were made to move by a pair of gears and a 1.5-metre long pendulum, which lifted 300 kilograms of weight! Now the hands move, thanks to electronics.
Under the station building is the longest underground passage in Minsk (over 250 metres), which connects the Druzhnaya bus station, located to the south of the station, to northern Privokzalna square.
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You can see the uniquely beautiful architectural monument “Gates of Minsk” on your own or as part of a sightseeing tour of the city. We advise choosing an evening tour to enjoy the “twin towers” and take stunning photographs. After passing through the front gates you will find yourself on Privokzalnaya square, right opposite the station building, the windows of which fully reflect the “Minsk Gates”. Incidentally, Privokzalna square is associated with an important historical event in 1905 – the “Kurlovski shootings” or rally of workers, including the railway station staff. As a result of the rally, over 80 people were killed and over a hundred wounded. Such bloody events took place in one of Minsk’s historic squares, but now Minsk is quite a friendly and very beautiful city, happily welcoming travellers from all over the world with its city gates!