Description of the villa Stamboli in Feodosia (Crimea)

The Crimean peninsula is famous for its ancient history, ranging from ancient Greek colonies, as well as numerous architectural monuments of a later time. One of them is the cottage Stamboli in Feodosia.

The beautiful oriental tale palace, which is the hallmark of Theodosius, is known as the Stamboli Dacha. Who was this man with such an unusual name?

Joseph Veniaminovich Stamboli (Karaite by nationality) was one of the three sons of the Crimean tobacco manufacturer. After the death of his father, he became the head of a prosperous, profitable enterprise. At the beginning of the twentieth century, he decided to build a cottage by the sea as a gift to his wife in honor of the tenth anniversary of the wedding.

The building was designed and supervised by the famous Petersburg architect Oscar Wegener. The customer has repeatedly intervened in the process, made changes in the style, elements of exterior and interior decoration. Construction was carried out from 1909 to 1914 and cost a substantial amount - more than one million rubles.

However, the family did not enjoy the new home for long. The revolutionary upheavals and the beginning of the Civil War forced the entrepreneur to leave everything and leave Russia. Stamboli with his wife and two daughters moved to Turkey, and then to France, where he also engaged in trade.

The mansion was first completely plundered, and then changed many of the "owners". Soon after the revolution, they even wanted to demolish the house.

First, in 1920, it housed the local branch of the All-Russian Emergency Commission, then there was a sanatorium. During the Great Patriotic War, when the Crimea was occupied by the Nazis, the villa was adapted as a German hospital.

After the war, there was a pioneer camp here, and in 1952 the sanatorium was again organized. Since 1984, the building has housed a drug treatment center.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, difficult times began in the life of an architectural monument. During the 90s the history of the mansion was very sad - he received more damage than for the revolution and all the wars. Here, in turn, worked a bank, a hotel, an elite restaurant under the appropriate signboard - “Dacha Stamboli”.

Only in 2013, caring people made the decision to create a museum, but the dacha at that time was, one might say, in a rather pitiful state.

The situation changed after the Republic of Crimea became part of the Russian Federation. The government transferred 150 million rubles for capital repairs and large-scale restoration. Many interior details had to be restored using archival data and old (pre-revolutionary) photos.

The architectural style of the Stamboli country house can be described as modern with Moorish and Oriental elements. There is also a similarity with the mausoleum of the Indian Maharajah and partly with the mosque and minarets. All this, together with a rich decor, makes the building look like a magical palace of Arabian fairy tales.

Its total area is just over 1500 square meters.

The complex consists of two floors and includes a four-tier tower, minarets, domes, covered terraces, columns. Inside the house is decorated with openwork lattices, stucco, gilding, wood and stone carvings, mosaics. The arches are lancet shaped. The floor is covered with expensive parquet with a pattern of valuable wood, the doors are massive, wooden, covered with carvings.Large windows offer a magnificent view of the sea and the promenade. Around the cottage there is a park where ancient trees are preserved.

The internal layout consists of a large number of rooms of the most diverse purposes. Here was the owner's office, several living rooms, halls, bedrooms, children’s, a winter garden with a fountain, a dining room and numerous utility rooms.

The interior makes a strong impression due to the mixing of styles, and the eastern one is dominant.

Since 2013, the building houses the Black Sea Center for Underwater Research and the Museum of Underwater Archeology. The exposition presents the most interesting artifacts found during a survey of the bottom of the Black Sea in the coastal waters around the Crimean peninsula and belonging to various historical eras and countries.

Here and ancient Greek amphoras, shards from ceramic dishes, anchors, coins, details of ship hulls, weapons, jewelry, jewelry, logbooks and some other documents.

Underwater archeology as a science first appeared about a hundred years ago in the Crimea, in Fedosia. After a difficult period of decline in the nineties and the beginning of the two thousand years, work was resumed, and now young scientists successfully continue the work of their predecessors.

Recently, the Center was awarded a grant from the Russian Geographical Society. Due to this, it is planned to increase the survey area. And also there was an opportunity to involve volunteers. Projects have been developed for new underwater archaeological expeditions, including the study of the sunken cities of ancient times, as well as dead ships.

The Center staff found the descendants of the Stamboli dynasty in France and maintains contact with them.

In 2016, a full-scale reconstruction began in the museum and in the surrounding area. The ceilings were removed and updated, emergency areas were removed, some decorative trim elements were restored. In the adjacent park, too, work is being done. But for the summer season in 2019, the complex plans to start receiving visitors again.

Beautiful cottage-palace is the pearl, the main attraction of the city of Feodosia. Numerous tourists coming to Crimea admire this architectural masterpiece with admiration.

Address - Aivazovsky Avenue, 47a. It is almost in the very center of the city.

From the bus station you can walk (two kilometers): to the south, first along the street. Fedko, then turn on the street. Ulyanova and go to the intersection with Aivazovsky Ave., where again turn to the south. In the same direction go bus №2 and 2А, regularly, with an interval of ten minutes. You need to get off at the stop "Listovnichey Street". From it to the architectural landmarks about three minutes walk.

The railway station is also close by, from it to the dacha a walking tour will take about twenty minutes, you need to go along Aivazovsky Avenue. You can take a bus: from the “Book” stop to the “Ukraine” cinema. The path from it to the monument will take no more than four minutes.

People usually come to the Crimea from April to September. However, in order to visit the museum, any time of the year will do.

Villa Stamboli in the city of Feodosia is not only a masterpiece of architectural craftsmanship, a celebration of mixing styles, luxurious interiors and a rich history, but now also a collection of artifacts raised by submariners from the bottom of the sea,as well as the most interesting discoveries of archaeologists, which help to see and appreciate the historical events of our country in a new way (both in the distant past and in relatively recent times).

You can watch Stamboli Palace in the next video.