Karelia is a well-known Russian region thanks to unique architectural, cultural and historical monuments which include the island of Kizhi,
Valaam Monastery as well as the Solovetsky Islands. These places are a part of the
World Heritage List made by UNESCO (Valaam is on the tentative list), and at the same time they are the national endow of Russia.
Kizhi
On the island of Kizhi in Lake Onego there is the biggest world ensemble of wooden architecture - famous Kizhi.
The main part of the Ensemble contains three wooden structures including the biggest Cathedral of Transfiguration,
which has got 22 domes and was built in 1714 without a single metal nail, the Church of Intercession of 1764, and the Bell Tower.
Other sights include the Archangel Michael's Chapel (18th century), the Church of Resurrection of Lazarus,
which dates back to the 16th century (the oldest object in the museum), peasants' houses, water mills,
saunas and a windmill. Today Kizhi is not only an open-air museum of wooden architecture
but also a place where old traditions are revived such as artistic crafts, folklore holidays and games.
Valaam
The island of Valaam is located in the southwest of Karelia in Lake Ladoga.
The first monastery was founded here in the 14th century and it was revived in the 80's of the 20th century.
The island is a traditional place for pilgrimage. One can observe a magnificent combination of
huge architectural ensembles, gardens and engineering structures with majestic nature of the island.
Solovetsky Islands
The Solovetsky Islands are historically connected with Karelia, being located on the border between
Arkhangelsk region and Karelia in the White Sea. In the 15th century the monastery was founded on the islands and
played a significant role in the exploration of the Russian north. It became one of the biggest spiritual and
cultural centres of Russia. The ensemble includes unique archeological monuments of pre-christian period,
a big Kremlin made of huge boulders, beautiful cathedrals, hand-made canals between the lakes of the island,
the botanical garden, churches, hermitages and monuments of nature.
Traditional Villages
The Republic of Karelia is also unique due to the fact that one can find traditional Karelian and Veps villages which survived
till our days. One of them is the village of Kinerma, which is located in Karelia at the distance of about 100 kilometers from
Petrozavodsk. The village is a monument of wooden architecture and it is famous for the fact that there are no modern houses in the village.
All houses and structures date back to the beginning of 20th century. Some of them are even older. On the way to Kinerma the travellers
get acquainted with another traditional village of Manga, with the Chapel of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin located on the top of
the hill and overlooking the village.
To the south of Petrozavodsk the village of Sheltozero is located. It is the settlement of Veps - Finno-Ugric people.
Travellers can see traditional wooden houses and the Museum of Veps culture
Petroglyphs
Petroglyphs are rock carvings created by the ancient people and they are considered to be very valuable evidence of
the remote past coming to us from the Neolithic Age. The age of Karelian Petroglyphs is estimated at 6 thousand years.
There are two groups of petroglyphs, which are located in different parts of Karelia.
The first group is located on the shores of Lake Onego, the second one is on the shores of the
White Sea near the town of Belomorsk. There are various drawings found in these places,
and local scientists still give new interpretations. On the whole we may certainly say that this is a
unique monument depicting the facts of ancient history of Karelia.
Countryside Churches
In different parts of Karelia travellers may observe interesting monumets of wooden architecture.
Karelia is famous for its forests that's why timber has always been the main construction material for local people.
Fortunately some structures including churches which date back to the 18-19th centuries survived till our days.
Aside of the churches of Kizhi, the most famous churches are the Church of the Assumption in Kondopoga, the Church of Apostle Peter in Martail Waters, Church Ensemble Il'ynski on an island in Vodlozersky National Park, the Church of Peter and Paul in the village of Virma near the White Sea and The Church of the Assumption in the town of Kem near the White Sea.
The most known chapels are in the villages of Manga, Kinerma and chapels on the islands around Kizhi (there are many of them). Some of them are closed for visitors, so the travellers may enjoy only the exteriors.
