Why are there Russian buildings in Harbin?

The city we live in was originally called Alekin, and it was called Harabin in Qing Dynasty, with a history of 100 years. However, the prosperity of its urban architecture and commercial trade is closely related to the arrival of a large number of Russian Jews, Poles and Russian nobles from more than a century ago to the first half of the 20th century. Today, a hundred years later, history has accumulated many beautiful buildings in the streets and alleys for this city. The onion heads and tent roofs in Byzantine, the beige walls of various public buildings in the urban area, and the relief decoration of the external walls of buildings ... No city in China has so many similarities with Moscow, so Harbin is known as "Oriental Moscow" by the world. Because the Middle East Railway paved by Russia more than 100 years ago brought a large number of Russian immigrants, who were baptized by the rain from all over the world and the wind from all directions, and in the baptism, they formed a different style from the traditional cities in China.

The gathering of immigrants from many countries has brought diverse cultures and diverse urban buildings. Many eclectic buildings, such as baroque architecture and classical revival architecture, as well as Russian architecture and Art Nouveau architecture, have sprung up in Harbin. When European, Russian, Japanese and other civilizations mingle, blend and collide with the culture of Northeast China, after a century, Russian architectural culture has always presented a clear and distinct vein in the cultural crystallization and fruit harvested in Harbin, which has become the keynote of the city's architecture.

After a hundred years of wind and rain, Harbin has become a modern metropolis, but the style of the city has never changed. People can still easily see the graceful figure of Moscow and feel the influence of the essence of Russian culture.

Due to the construction of the Middle East Railway, some Russians left their homes and became the earliest builders and designers in Harbin. It seems that they came to Harbin with the mission of building overseas homes and the sense of accomplishment of pioneering adventures. This land, which is farther away than Siberia, makes these designers and builders from Russia suffer from homesickness. Here, they can only make this land feel more at home and create a city form that is consistent or similar to their own country, so as to soothe the homesickness of a large number of expatriates living in other countries. Therefore, "Oriental Moscow" is not only another name of Harbin, but also a footnote of Harbin.

Religious architecture opened the prelude to the large-scale construction of "Oriental Moscow". Harbin's urban construction began on a large scale in A.D. 1898. Early buildings were not residential buildings, but a large number of religious buildings. Russian immigrants who can't live without spiritual food for a moment first built a church in Harbin. 1900, St. Nicholas Cathedral opened, and the church was named after Russian Tsar Nicholas. The architectural pattern was selected by the Petersburg design competition and built by Russian architectural engineer Lebedev. This is a typical dry wood structure built of logs. The statue of the Virgin Mary at the main entrance and the murals outside the main hall are made by Russian painter Gurshziwenk, which are solemn and magnificent. 1923, in order to meet the rapid increase of orthodox Christians in Harbin, the military church Hagia Sophia, which was originally a wooden structure, was rebuilt. It lasted nine years and was completed in 1932, becoming the largest brick-wood cathedral in the Far East at that time. It is deeply influenced by Byzantine architectural art, including Russian dome, Roman arch window and the organic combination of various architectural styles.

According to a document of Harbin Planning Bureau, there were 300,000 Orthodox Christians in Harbin by 1922. By 1936, there were 22 orthodox churches in Harbin. The construction of the church not only soothes Russian expatriates, but also casts a beautiful reflection on the architectural style of a city.

The construction of the church completely "isolated" Harbin from the traditional architectural style of China, and the subsequent architectural forms of the city absorbed the excellent elements of religious architecture more or less. In order to dress up the city more like their hometown, Russian expatriates copied many Russian architectural symbols into the city. 1924 in may, the supervisor designed by Russian engineer Komtrashok paved the central street with square stones. The paving stone is carved from granite, with a length of18cm and a width of10cm. Their shape and size are like Russian buns. They are exquisite, compact and bright, which is strikingly similar to the granite road in Arbat Street, Russia.

Relief outside public buildings; A warm tone composed of beige and gray in Harbin; The stained glass on the church building, the green, gold or yellow roof ... This design symbol often reveals the designer's yearning for the European hometown. It is this yearning that makes Harbin Architectural Art Museum a good name.

One hundred years later, we can still appreciate the architectural entities of Renaissance works, such as Art Nouveau, romanticism, eclecticism, baroque art and classicism. Lin Qiu Company in Baroque Art Style, Moscow Shopping Center in Elnor Besing Art Style (now Heilongjiang Provincial Museum), Madill Hotel; Symbolic buildings with Russian architectural style —— Consulate of the former Soviet Union and Songhua River Club with typical Russian style wood structure.