State Museum of the History of Religion (SMHR)

For 2013 among priority activities of the Museum – not only studying of monuments of cultural heritage and exposition and exhibition activity, but also creation of educational and museum and pedagogical programs, the relevant museum and tourist product addressed to different groups of visitors.

The museum takes active part in the solution of welfare problems of the Northwest region. Socially oriented projects are developed especially for different address groups: children, youth, military personnel, representatives of different faiths and so forth.

The perspective of the Museum is rather difficult. However, in neutral space of the museum professional work of research associates, keepers, museum teachers, guides and other specialists allows to get acquainted with religion in language, cogitable the most unprepared visitor.

Task of our employees – not training in fundamentals of religion and not imposing of preferences. The museum tells about history and cultural traditions of the different people, learns to respect their religious views, cultivates the culture of conscious tolerance in relation to representatives of different faiths and different ethno-religious groups.

History

1932: Opening of the museum

State Museum of the History of Religion was formed in the system of Academy of Sciences of the USSR on the basis of decisions of Presidium of Academy of Sciences of the USSR of September 7, 1930 and the Secretariat of the Central Election Commission of the USSR of April 26, 1931. The outstanding Russian historian of religion, the ethnographer and the anthropologist V.G. Bogoraz-Tang (1865–1936) was an initiator of creation of the Museum and its first director. The exhibits from collections of the museum of anthropology and ethnography of Peter the Great (Cabinet of curiosities), the State Hermitage, Library of Academy of Sciences and the State Russian Museum used in the antireligious exhibition created by the staff of Academy of Sciences in halls of the Winter Palace in Leningrad in April, 1930 were the basis for collections of the new museum.

November 15, 1932. The museum was solemnly open in the building of Kazan Cathedral.

Unlike existing those years in the different cities of the so-called antireligious museums (The Leningrad antireligious museum worked from 1929 to 1932), the Museum of history of religion was created within Academy of Sciences as the research and scientific and educational organization designed to study in a complex religion as a difficult socio-historical phenomenon, including consideration of evolution of religious representations and cults, places of religion in spiritual culture of different eras, psychological aspect of religious belief, religious social movements, processes of laicisation, religious art, etc. For decades museum employees, not only created exposures and exhibitions, not only stored (often saving from destruction) many monuments of religious culture, but also conducted systematic research on their studying.

1932-1944: Formation

The period from 1932 to 1944 is a stage of formation of the Museum of history of religion, underlay of bases and traditions scientific and share, exposition, educational and research. By 1941 MIR concentrated in the funds the large collection of exhibits, otazhayushchy variety of religions. Among them – the collection of orthodox icons of the 17-20th centuries, objects of the dekoratinovno-applied and fine arts reflecting history and the culture of the western and east Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, traditional beliefs of the people of the Caucasus, Siberia, the Volga region, religions of China and Japan. In the Museum the unique library which became the largest collection of books on history of religion and religious studies in Russia opened. In 1935 the bureau of Department of history of Academy of Sciences announced creation based on the Museum of research association of studying of religion.

In days of the Great Patriotic War most of employees of the Museum was at the front, remained maintained safety of museum collections, were on duty on a roof of cathedral, extinguished fire bombs. Museum exposure was contracted, however access to M.I. Kutuzov's grave remained. In the years of blockade by the staff of the museum it was created several exhibitions devoted military historically to the past of our people. In 1942 on a colonnade of Kazan Cathedral the exhibition devoted to the Russian military patriotic traditions was unrolled.

1944-1960: Recovery after war

The second stage of history of the Museum (1944-1960) is connected with its recovery after war and creation of big exposure on history of religions of the world which made it known not only in the USSR but also abroad. Exposures of departments were created:

• "Religion of Ancient Egypt",
• "Religion and atheism of Ancient Greece",
• "Origin of Christianity",
• "History of Orthodoxy and Russian atheism",
• "History of papacy and inquisition",
• "Religions of China",
• "Natural sciences and religion",
• numerous mobile photo exhibitions.

Only for 1954-1956. The museum was visited by about one million people, about 40 thousand tours were conducted. Sixteen post-war years are mentioned by issue of the large monographic researches devoted to different questions of history of religion and free-thinking, the publication of seven releases of Annual of the WORLD (1957–1963) – the fundamental theological periodical which is still saving the scientific value.

It is a lot of energy and forces the director of that time the outstanding expert on history of religious movements and the public figure V.D. Bonch-Bruyevich (1843-1955) who was constantly living in Moscow and directing the Museum from there enclosed it in strengthening of positions of the Museum. In 1944 M.M. Shakhnovich (1911-1992) – the famous historian of religion and free-thinking who had deep erudition, extensive experience and remarkable managerials ability, under his supervision became the associate director on scientific work and with its direct participation all activity of MIR from 1944 to the 1960th was performed. In different years cooperated with the Museum, advised, published articles in museum editions, or such wonderful scientists were members of the Academic council of the Museum as well as. D. Amusin, P.I. Boriskovsky, B.L. Bogayevsky, S.N. Valk, A.H. Gorfunkel, A.I. Klibanov, I.A. Kryvelev, S.G. Lozinsky, S.Ya. Lurye, A.O. Makovelsky, M.E. Mathieu, V.I. Rutenburg, A.V. Predtechensky, V.Ya. Propp, A.B. Ranovich, V.V. Struva, A.P. Okladnikov, B.I. Sharevskaya, V.O. Shaskolsky, etc.

In 1954. The museum received the name: State Museum of the History of Religion and atheism of Academy of Sciences of the USSR.

1961: Resubordination to Ministry of Culture, atheistic promotion

Since 1961. The museum was transferred from Academy of Sciences to maintaining the Ministry of Culture of the USSR. During this period the turn of all work of the Museum towards open atheistic promotion was outlined, it was promoted by direct influence of the Leningrad regional committee of the CPSU. It could not but affect both exposition work of the museum, and scientific research which had to focus, first of all, on the solution of relevant tasks.

The 1970th: New exposure

Since the beginning of the 1970th new trends were outlined in activity of the Museum: work on new exposure began, exhibition, sobiratelsky and research work quickened. GMIR became the scientific and methodical center, the staff of the Museum began to go with exhibitions and lectures on the whole country.

1990-2000: New building, reconstruction

In the 1990th. The initial name – State Museum of the History of Religion is returned to the museum. It is the museum of federal importance and submits to the Ministry of Culture and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation.

In May, 1991 the decision to transfer to the Museum the building on Pochtamtskaya Street where reconstruction soon began was made.

In 2000 GMIR moved to the new building and is located near the building of the Legislative Assembly of Saint Petersburg and St. Isaac's Cathedral. In Russia for the first time after almost century break the museum complex was placed in the building which is specially equipped and specially adapted for museum needs.