From the day of its opening, the museum director Arseny Bashkirov conducted excursions around the exposition of the History and Production Museum branch (IPM) for Norilsk residents and guests of the city. For a former engineer and journalist, a full member of the Geographical Society of the USSR, who had taken part in the restoration of the 57-year-old relic together with geologists, the exposition became a museum debut. With the help of the first inhabitant of the First House, Nikolay Urvantsev, and the IPM funds, the director also restored the interior of the dwelling of the Norilsk expedition participants. There was a place for ethnography, including items from the collection of the novice collector Oleg Krashevsky.
The First House of Norilsk as a museum was opened when its first inhabitant turned 85. In August, 1978, it hosted the troupe of the famous Theater of Satire, who came on tour from the capital. Anatoly Papanov, Olga Aroseva, Andrey Mironov, Alexander Shirvindt, Mikhail Derzhavin and other famous artists listened to Arseny Bashkirov.
For other materials of our photo project, see the History spot tag.
Text: Varvara Sosnovskaya, Photo: Nornickel Polar Branch archive
