House of I. G. Bilibin (Shamil)

About museum

At the corner of Pushkin and Bauman Streets stands a mansion built at the end of the 18th century for the merchant Ivan Galaktionovich Bilibin. In 1848 the house was purchased by retired Lieutenant Colonel A. M. Sukhotin. In 1859 the imam of Chechnya and Dagestan, Shamil, surrendered at Gunib. After being received in St. Petersburg by Emperor Alexander II, Shamil was allotted Kaluga as his place of residence. In November the imam moved into this house, and in January 1860 his family and servants arrived. In 1866 Shamil swore an oath of allegiance and loyalty to the Russian emperor. On November 25, 1868 he left Kaluga. At house No. 4 on Pushkin Street are the Museum of Arms and the exhibition "Beauty in Details", as well as an exhibition dedicated to the Kaluga Diocese. More than 100 unique weapons and a portrait gallery of the Kaluga bishops are displayed there. This house is forever associated with Shamil's name, and many items are being shown to the public for the first time.