Biblioteka Imeni Lenina (russian: Библиоте́ка и́мени Ле́нина, en, Lenin Library) is a station on the
Sokolnicheskaya Line of the
Moscow Metro
The Moscow Metro) is a metro system serving the Russian capital of Moscow as well as the neighbouring cities of Krasnogorsk, Reutov, Lyubertsy and Kotelniki in Moscow Oblast. Opened in 1935 with one line and 13 stations, it was the first ...
. The station was opened on 15 May 1935 as a part of the first stage of the Metro. It is situated in the very centre of the city under
Mokhovaya Street, and is named for the nearby
Russian State Library (named the Lenin Library from 1925 until 1992). Its architects were A. I. Gontskevich and S. Sulin.
To prevent the disruption of traffic, Biblioteka Imeni Lenina was built using underground excavation rather than cut and cover even though the station ceiling is just two metres (6.5 ft) below ground level. Soil conditions and the narrowness of the space in which the station was to be built necessitated a single-vault design, the only one on the first Metro line. The entire excavation was only 19.8 metres (65 ft) wide and 11.7 metres (38 ft) high. The main station vault was built from rubble stone set in
concrete
Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wid ...
and reinforced with an
iron
Iron () is a chemical element with Symbol (chemistry), symbol Fe (from la, Wikt:ferrum, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 element, group 8 of the periodic table. It is, Abundanc ...
framework. This was lined with an "
umbrella
An umbrella or parasol is a folding canopy supported by wooden or metal ribs that is usually mounted on a wooden, metal, or plastic pole. It is designed to protect a person against rain or sunlight. The term ''umbrella'' is traditionally use ...
" of
bitumen-coated
paper
Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distrib ...
to prevent groundwater from seeping into the station. The station was finished with
plaster
Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...
, yellow ceramic tile, and
marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...
.
The station originally had two entrance vestibules, one at either end. The southern vestibule, located between the old and new buildings of the State Library, is shared with
Borovitskaya. The temporary northern vestibule, which served Biblioteka Imeni Lenina and
Aleksandrovsky Sad, was removed in the 1940s.
Transfers
From this station it is possible to transfer to
Arbatskaya on the
Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line,
Aleksandrovsky Sad on the
Filyovskaya Line
The Filyovskaya line (russian: Филёвская ли́ния, ), or Line 4 and 4A, is a line of the Moscow Metro. Chronologically the sixth to open, it connects the major western districts of Dorogomilovo and Fili along with the Moscow-City ...
, and
Borovitskaya on the
Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line.
Though Biblioteka Imeni Lenina and Aleksandrovsky Sad (then called Komintern) were built concurrently, they were not connected by transfer passages until 1938, when Aleksandrovsky Sad became part of the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line. Before this the line from Aleksandrovsky Sad to
Kievskaya operated as a branch of the Sokolnicheskaya Line.
External links
Description of the station on Metro.ruDescription of the station on Mymetro.ruDescription of the station on Metro.molot.ruKartaMetro.info— Station location and exits on Moscow map
{{Moscow Metro
Moscow Metro stations
Railway stations in Russia opened in 1935
Sokolnicheskaya Line
Railway stations located underground in Russia