Museum of Russian Railways (St. Petersburg)

I don’t think that the railways of my country will arouse much interest among foreign viewers: the railway track is different and, as a result, our locomotives are unknown abroad. It was Russia that sucked in traction and rolling stock into its vast expanses, but did not give it to others – there was not enough for itself. On our roads there were many trains and carriages of European and even American (lend-lease) manufacture.

So I won’t focus your attention on the exhibits, as I usually do, tediously and meticulously, I’ll show you the museum and the modern Russian museum approach – this museum in this very execution is quite new (since 2017) in the city that we call the second capital or cultural capital – St. Petersburg. The museum is located in the reconstructed building of the former depot of the operating railway station.
In any case, I think that railway lovers and enthusiasts will find this interesting.

You are amazed immediately from the entrance: straight ahead – steam locomotives, on the left – carriages, on the right – a dissected steam locomotive, on top – a web of pipes, rods, beams!

This locomotive itself is an interesting thing in itself.

Through these eyepieces, virtual reality is superimposed on him: water, steam, air – everything is moving.

The only thing is that it’s hard to get through to them: there are always children watching. You can’t fight them!

This locomotive has another unique feature – you can walk under it!

Personally, it was my first time under a steam locomotive. As a rule, whoever gets there is forever.

This locomotive was followed by its brothers,

and then the younger comrades: diesel locomotives

and electric locomotives.

It feels like you’re going in circles!

And that’s exactly what it is: along a huge turning circle, and even with a steam locomotive.

I won’t, as I usually do, dwell on each exhibit in detail. Firstly, there are a lot of them, and secondly, they are quite close together. So let’s just go look at the steam locomotives.

If there is a ladder, then you can climb up and look. But the museum workers are cunning: they covered it with glass – it’s safer.

I never pass by the passenger steam locomotive P36, and it’s impossible: it’s a beauty!

However, freaks attract no less attention. How do you like this fireless steam locomotive?

Diesel locomotives don’t really excite me,

even if you make a diorama with them on a 1:1 scale.

And electric locomotives, not particularly – only if they are of an early design.

This is the first fully built in the USSR direct current electric locomotive. The American electric locomotive of the General Electric company was used as a basis.

I love all kinds of railway gibberish, regardless of the driving force.

Besides the fact that you can walk under the locomotive here, you can also walk above them. There’s a staircase over there.

Let’s go and see!

If you run there, be careful not to break the glass.

Have you broken it yet? Well, okay, there’s another one just like it.

PS. I told you about faceted glasses the other day. They are associated with vodka only for those who drink vodka. For everyone else, they are associated with train travel.
The classic activity on Russian trains is to drink tea.

Sometimes vodka too.
What else is there to do there? The Moscow-Vladivostok train takes a week!

To be continued…

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Thank you Yuri for another fascinating museum tour. I look forward to the coming installments. Imagine spending a week on a train! How elegant and nostalgic.

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Thank you for sharing those pictures. I especially like the older locomotives and cutaway display showing the boiler tubes, fire box, and so forth.

There is a very good train museum located about an hour from me, in Old Town Sacramento, California, but I have not visited in a very long time. My family has a historical association with trains, both the real and miniature kind. I have not carried on either tradition but find older trains interesting.

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Really great collection of locomotives there. They seem ti be well preserved.

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From above you can see not only steam locomotives, but also various carriages.

But this is a much less entertaining activity. In this case, it is better to go down to their level and look from the “ground”. Their assortment is quite diverse. The age-old patriarchs are especially attractive in appearance.

There are some really intricate designs (Two-axle tank for petroleum products).

But it is even more interesting to go inside the carriages, and many of them provide such an opportunity. This is what a Class III commuter carriage looks like from a century ago. Last - smoking area.

These carriages carried settlers to the Far East and Siberia.

I’m sure that @SSGToms wouldn’t agree to travel for even a few hours under such conditions. Me neither. :slightly_smiling_face:

Mail was traveling for them or from them.

While the train is moving, postal workers sort the letters.

It was also necessary to deliver products over long distances. This is what a refrigerated wagon looked like (text: isothermal wagon).

Some of the carriages were “sawed up”

to make display stands out of them.
(Left: top – church car, bottom – prisoner car. Right: boiler for heating water for tea – remember: the main activity of the trip).

There’s even a virtual train. And not just any one, but an imperial one!

(Text: “Virtual tour of the imperial train”.)
You can walk around in virtual reality as the Emperor himself.

After several hours of walking, my favorite is this carriage.

Because it’s not a carriage at all, but a buffet stylized as one. The kitchen is so-so, but it doesn’t matter at that point.

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I am very impressed with this museum, both for cleanliness and quality of the displays.

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When you enter some carriages, you bump into guests and they’re not people,

but mannequins. Sometimes you come across mannequins that are not people.

They are mostly monochrome, but there are exceptions.

There are plenty of them on the platforms in completely different situations.

People hang out with them and take pictures with great pleasure.

There are also extremely expressive compositions, the integrity and spirit of which people do not violate.

Some of the mannequins of railway specialties are “digitized”: there is a mannequin standing next to a board with its image. And suddenly he comes to life there and tells in a monologue who he is and what he does. Among them: a carriage inspector,

coupler, stewardess

and some others.

But the surreal thing is with the movers. There is a luggage cart with suitcases, in the open lids of which are two monitors, facing each other. On one monitor is an elderly pre-revolutionary mover, on the other – a young Soviet one. This is how they conduct a dialogue there without external interference.

There is actually quite a bit of interactivity there: all the exhibit signs are multimedia: you can read the technical description, you can study the history, and even in English.

The controls are implemented in the form of a railway turntable – a tribute to the museum theme.

They write that the area of ​​the museum is over 39,000 square meters, i.e. more than five football fields.

That’s why I’m so tired!

To be continued…

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Walking through the halls, sometimes you manage to glance at the street. And the street begins to beckon.

Especially in good weather, which is rare in St. Petersburg. So my advice: when the sun shines, go outside, when it rains, go back.

And something awaits you at the exit! No, well, first the locomotive,

and this very something is already attached to it.

Recently we admired the same thing – on Poklonnaya Hill, in Moscow. But there it’s alone, but here it’s part of a squad, with a trailing armored platform.

Here, for sure: no one will steal or bend the sign.

There is another military monster there, modern analogues of which, as I heard, have resumed combat duty.

Lately, for some inexplicable reason, I have come to like railway cranes.

I’ve always loved railway gibberish, and you can’t just pass by one this beautiful and elegant.

I must say that there are not many of them here.


Although the latter is not self-propelled, but trailer-type, so it does not count.

All sorts of shunting diesel and electric locomotives are slightly more represented. From a rather exotic type, produced by our former “friends” in the socialist camp,

to quite ordinary and familiar domestic products.

I am always sincerely amazed when I discover representatives of the fair sex among the pieces of iron I review.

Most likely, I am wrong and this is purely male chauvinism. I understand this, but I still can’t stop being surprised.

There are a number of carriages on the site, of different years of construction and purpose.

Overall, there is nothing particularly remarkable, with one exception.

Now let’s move from the group of exhibits we’ve viewed to the next one.

You can walk to the next flock of exhibits, or you can take a train.

I’m more used to walking, and I’m not old enough for this train.

In general, the site is dedicated to passenger rail service.

You can admire the electric trains including domestic speed champions, each of which is in a single copy.

Walking around the museum all day is a piece of cake.

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Thank you for sharing your photos of your visit. This looks like an extraordinarily interesting museum.

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