Pushkin Apartment Museum, St. Petersburg

The Pushkin Apartment Museum occupies the final home of Alexander Pushkin (1799-1837). In September 1836, Pushkin rented a ground-floor apartment in the former Volkonsky family mansion and lived there with his wife, Natalia Goncharova, and their children.

After being mortally wounded in his duel with Georges d’Anthès on January 27, 1837 Old Style, Pushkin was brought home and died there on January 29 Old Style (February 10 New Style). The memorial apartment was reconstructed using historical documents, recollections of contemporaries, and a drawing by Vasily Zhukovsky. Authentic objects include Pushkin’s writing desk and chair, death mask, a lock of his hair, the sofa on which he died, his wife’s jewelry, and portraits of his children. The study forms the central memorial room. An introductory exhibition explains the history of the house, Pushkin’s final months, circumstances surrounding the duel, and contemporary reactions to his death. The apartment became a memorial site during the 1920s, with the museum opening to visitors in 1927. Since 1953, it has formed part of the All-Russian Pushkin Museum. A monument to Pushkin stands in the courtyard, where commemorative gatherings are traditionally held on the anniversary of his death.

The reconstructed domestic rooms and surviving personal possessions document Pushkin’s final months and preserve the setting associated with the last days of his life.