The

Merchant Court Gostinyi dvor ( rus, гостиный двор, p=ɡɐˈsʲtʲinɨj ˈdvor) is a historic Russian term for an indoor market or shopping centre. It is translated from Russian either as "guest court" or "merchant yard", although both translations ...

(Гостиный двор) is a network of fortified

depot Depot ( or ) may refer to: Places * Depot, Poland, a village * Depot Island, Kemp Land, Antarctica * Depot Island, Victoria Land, Antarctica * Depot Island Formation, Greenland Brands and enterprises * Maxwell Street Depot, a restaurant in ...

s built on the Pur-Navolok promontory in

Arkhangelsk Arkhangelsk (, ; rus, Арха́нгельск, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲsk), also known in English as Archangel and Archangelsk, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina near ...

by a team of German and Dutch masons between 1668 and 1684. Only the northern tower of the original structure and parts of the western wall facing the

Northern Dvina The Northern Dvina (russian: Се́верная Двина́, ; kv, Вы́нва / Výnva) is a river in northern Russia flowing through the Vologda Oblast and Arkhangelsk Oblast into the Dvina Bay of the White Sea. Along with the Pechora River ...

still stand. In the 17th century Arkhangelsk handled more than half of the country's exports. The local merchant court was rebuilt in stone after the fire in May 1667. The complex consisted of the Russian and German courts (for native and foreign merchants, respectively) and the so-called Stone Town (Каменный город) wedged in between. After Peter the Great conquered the Baltic coastline and moved the capital to

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

, most foreign trade was rerouted and the Arkhangelsk trade center was abandoned. In the 19th century the remaining buildings were used as a

customs house A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...

. The Neoclassical bourse with a squat tower was added to the complex in 1788. By the mid-20th century many buildings had fallen into irreparable decay and were demolished. In 1981 the crumbling structure was adapted to house a local-history

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

. Restoration has been underway since 1992. It is still delayed by lack of funds.

References

{{coord, display=title, 64, 32, 21, N, 40, 30, 40, E, type:landmark_region:RU Buildings and structures completed in 1674 Buildings and structures in Arkhangelsk Shopping malls in Russia Forts in Russia Custom houses 17th-century establishments in Russia 17th-century fortifications Cultural heritage monuments of federal significance in Arkhangelsk Oblast