VLADIMIR LENIN ACROSS THE WORLD

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Lenin, born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (22 April 1870 – 21 January 1924), was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1924 and of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1924. Under his administration, Russia and then the wider Soviet Union became a one-party Marxist–Leninist state governed by the Russian Communist Party. Ideologically a communist, he developed a variant of Marxism known as Leninism. _^wikipedia

I searched for Lenin to see if he survived the 1900s.

This is the northernmost statue of Vladimir Lenin, it stands in the abandoned settlement of Pyramiden in the Arctic, on the Spitsbergen archipelago, 2489 km from Moscow.

Mosaic of Lenin in the abandoned military settlement near the former airport Brand. The airfield was built by the Luftwaffe during the expansion of the army by Nazi Germany, between 1938 and 1939. In January 1951, work began on expanding the former Luftwaffe airbase for the Soviet armed forces. 

Hidden between old appartment buildings dating from Soviet times we found this lenin statue. The history of this statue is unknown, even the locals don’t know the statue is here.

In 1997, a Dutch entrepreneur imported a nine-meter-high statue of the Russian revolutionary. The statue was placed at his construction company in the Groningen village of Tjuchem. Nowadays, the statue can be admired in East Groningen. The statue is made of bronze and weighs no less than 17,000 kilos. The statue originally comes from Merseburg. The official unveiling took place in 1971. It shows Lenin in his most depicted pose, martially pointing where the road to socialism leads. That Lenin tries to hail a taxi in the other, obviously unofficial statement that was considered sacrilege.

This rather unknown sculpture is standing in the restricted area of the former military area of Zeithain. In 2007, the government decided to dismantle the base in Zeithain. Most of the buildings were torn down, but Lenin is still standing. 

Chernobyl-2 is an old Soviet town in Ukraine. It was home of the ‘Duga-1 Radar’. The military village is situated in the woods, about 10 kilometers south from Chernobyl and Pripyat. It used to be a top secret military site during the Soviet times.

This statue of the communist leader was made in Czechoslovakia. The statue was originally unveiled in December 1957 in the small town of Hořovice in central Bohemia, where it remained until 1990. The Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany (MLPD) bought it at auction for 16,000 euros from an Austrian entrepreneur. The 2.15 meters high statue made of cast iron was installed in front of its headquarters in Gelsenkirchen in 2020. City authorities had attempted to prevent the statue from being installed, but their appeals were rejected by courts.

Amasia is a small village in Amrenia near Gyumri (the former Leninakan). There are only around 2,200 people living there. Amasia is home to this gigantic Lenin statue. The statue was built in 1985.

Estonian Lenin sculptor and USSR Art Prize recipient, Jaak Soans created this Lenin statue at a cost of 60,000 GDR Marks for the city of Schwerin. The Lenin Statute was unveiled on June 22, 1985. The Lenin in Schwerin is the last Lenin in Germany to remain in its original location. In 2014, a company offered to buy the Lenin statue, melt the bronze and transform it into a church bell. The city politely declined.

This is the Lenin Bust of Fürstenberg School Nr.27. While Lenin’s head is in poor condition, with the hole and the missing nose, it’s been like this for several years. It’s located just a few meters from here he once originally stood.

The Lenin relief was once the focal point of Kaserne Vogelsang, the former headquarters of the Soviet Army in East Germany. Despite efforts by art historians to protect the entire mural as a monument, their application was denied. However, in the spring of 2017, the monument honoring the Communist revolutionary was rescued and relocated to Wünsdorf, where it now stands in front of the Red Star Museum.

What is said to be the first-ever statue of Lenin is still standing in the Arbanyak Soviet Camp. It is situated outside Vanadzor, also known from the Soviet Union times as Kirovakan. It was erected during his lifetime.

The site is an abandoned military base that was built in 1934 as an airfield for the Wehrmacht. In May 1945, the Red Army took over the complex. This lone Lenin statue still stands by the entrance, though it seems to look a little worse for wear, having lost its face some time ago.

The over 3 meters high bronze-statue, made by the famous Soviet sculptor Nikolai Tomski, was a gift from the Soviet twin-town Nikopol in 1975. It was placed in front of the town hall until 1991. It was moved to the little a military cemetery. The statue was restored in 2022.

This big statue of Lenin was set just in front of the Haus der Offiziere in Wünsdorf. Lenin is over four meters high and stands on a pedestal of red granite. It was made by Vladimir Gontsharov and inaugurated on the 20. April 1970.

The Lenin monument was revealed on November 4, 1981, in Pärnu at the square facing the Savings Bank. The statue’s sculptor was Matti Varik. It was a replica of the monument given to Kotka in Finland in 1979. The statue was taken down on September 20, 1990. Following years of being stored away, the Pärnu City Government donated the bronze bust to the Estonian History Museum in 2016.

In the early 1970s, the Halle-Neustadt district in Halle saw the creation of some remarkable murals that still exist today. The artist Erich Enge painted the mural “He stirred the sleep of the world” dedicated to Lenin. At the center of the painting, Lenin is shown surrounded by young people eager to learn. It is a silicate painting on cement plates, unveiled in 1971. After the reunification, the artwork was completely dismantled, cleaned, and reattached.

A Lenin mural inside a theater of the Olympic Village, build for the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. The military use of the Olympic Village began immediately after the Olympic Games, first the Wehrmacht and after the end of the Second World War the Soviet army moved in.

The statue of Lenin in Volkspark has quite an unusual tale. In 1994, when the Soviet Army vacated the Bornstedter Feld military complex in Potsdam, they simply left the statue behind. Years later, when an exhibition on the complex’s military history was organized in Volkspark, Lenin’s bust was selected to be a part of it. It remained in the park for four years (2001-2005) alongside other historical artifacts. After the exhibition ended, all items were taken away, except for Lenin’s bust, which for some reason was left behind.

Duga-1 is part of a trio of Soviet ‘over the horizon’ radar stations. Construction of the radar station near the military town Chernobyl-2 began in 1970. The area is enclosed by walls covered in Soviet propaganda and overseen by Lenin.

There are two Lenin statues in Wünsdorf. This area used to be the largest military base of the Red Army outside the Soviet Union, covering 590 hectares with 1000 buildings surrounded by a concrete wall, and completely off-limits to the German population. The statue of Lenin, is situated in front of the decaying casino.

The Oranienbaum area housed old Russian barracks and a military training ground. The Wehrmacht utilized the forested area for military training starting in 1935, and it was later acquired by the Red Army after the war. The Red Army used the space to convert explosives from the nearby chemical plant into ammunition. The complex includes numerous bunkers, as well as a cinema and a gymnasium. At the heart of the complex stands a concrete artwork.

Lenin at the Grutas Museum library in Lithuania.

This big statue is one of the last remnants of the garrison next to the airfield in Nohra, used by the Soviet Army from 1945 until 1992.  In the early 1970s, a statue of Lenin was placed in front of a stylized concrete flag of the Soviet Union at the barracks. Following the departure of the Soviet Army, most of the structures were torn down. Despite this, the statue of Lenin was saved because of its historical significance. It was later renovated. However, the symbol of the Soviet Union on the red flag was omitted during the restoration process.

Mads Eg Damgaard, a Danish entrepreneur, acquired the Lenin monument from the Russians following the collapse of the Berlin Wall. It took nearly a decade for the Damgaard family to have it transported from Jelgava in Riga to the heath of Central Jutland. The statue, crafted by artist Otto Kalejs, was purchased for $10,000 in 1994. The forks in stainless steel, on which Lenin rests, were created by artist Sven Dalsgaard. Lenin now stands at a height of four meters in Lund, Herning, serving as a prominent display.

Lenin, guarded by an alpaka at the entrence of Grūto parkas in Druskininkai, a village southwest of Vilnius, Lithuania.

Bust of Lenin by Nedko Krastev and Nikolina Kanarova on display in the Museum of Socialist Art

The Lenin statue, standing at 2.5 meters tall, used to be situated outside the Csepel ironworks factory in Csepel Island, a bustling industrial area in the late 19th century. Originally placed in front of the Csepel Muvek complex, the statue symbolized the Hungarian heavy industry. After being installed in Budapest in 1958, following Khrushchev’s recommendation, the statue was eventually taken down in 1989. It wasn’t until 1996 that the statue found its new home in Budapest again, thanks to a donation from the factory to the Memento Park.

The bronze statue was originally displayed in the Jõhvi ‘Kultuurpalee Oktoober’ theater on the first floor foyer. It was made by Tõnu Maarand in 1978. After Estonia gained independence, the sculpture was moved to the backstage room. In 2004, storing the Lenin statue became an issue during renovations at the theater. The statue was temporarily housed in different locations until 2007, when the bronze head was donated to the Estonian History Museum.

Lenin is depicted on the walls of the deserted complex of the former military hospital in Jüterbog. The painting displays the leader of the October Revolution wearing a brown suit and his iconic working-cap. The image is bordered by a Saint George’s ribbon, a symbol of bravery in the Soviet military.

This Lenin statue originaly stood on the central street Dozsa Gyorgy of Budapest. The 4 meter high statue was removed from its place on 31 May 1989 and never returned. Today it belongs to the communist statues collection of the Memento Park in Budapest.

Lenin, 1963 by Lev Kerbel in the Sculpture Park of Socialist Art in Sofia.

Lenin at the abandoned Brandis-Waldpolenz airfield in Saxony. The airfield built by the Nazis in 1934 was later used by the Soviet Army between 1948 and 1992. The mural was in a poor state of repair for a long time. In 2020, photographer ‘Photosucher’ and Carlos Gomes from Lenin Is Still Around, cleaned the monument.

Banya village, located near Bansko in Bulgaria, is home to a life-size statue of Lenin and Georgi Dimitrov, Bulgaria’s first Communist dictator. The double statue was funded by a local man who moved to the US in 1912. In the 1960s, he generously donated a substantial sum of money to his hometown of Banya, with the stipulation that it be used to build a new community center and… the aforementioned monument of Lenin and Dimitrov.

The room is very dark, requiring a torch to illuminate it. Suddenly, Lenin emerges on the rear wall, depicted in a determined stride forward. In the background, there are symbolic structures and elements representing the Soviet Union, along with a waving red flag bearing a Roman numeral XXVII. Evidently, this mural was commissioned for the 27th Party Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, held in Moscow from February 25th to March 6th, 1986.

This statue of Lenin in Bulgaria is one of the few that managed to survive the events of 1989. Novgrad appears frozen in time, with the monument’s rigid gesture perfectly reflecting the unchanged urban environment. It was built with the money of the villagers, many of whom still admire the communist leader today.

This Lenin Relief made by Szabó Iván in 1970 was originally situated at VII. Lenin square (today Erzsébet square) in Budapest. Today you can see it at Momento park in the same city.

The Lenin twins in Grūto parkas, a sculpture garden of Soviet-era statues.

Bust of Lenin made in 1949 by Stoyu Todorov. On display in the Museum of Socialist Art, an outdoor sculpture garden in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Sekul Krumov made this Lenin statue in 1970 for the city of Sliven, Bulgaria. Today it is part of the sculpture garden of the Museum of Socialist Art in Sofia.

In the early 1990s, a group of sculptures from the former Soviet Union were brought to the Kayser iron and steel works for melting and reuse. However, some pieces were temporarily stored in a warehouse. For reasons unknown, they were not melted down. During the planning of a garden exhibition, the mayor Christina Dörr-Schmidt stumbled upon these sculptures and came up with the idea of creating an art installation with them in the new natural complex. The nine sculptures were placed along a secluded path without pedestals, symbolizing the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the hero worship.

A wooden panel that was part of a mural in one of the halls of the former Krampnitz kaserne. The Red Army’s ’35th Guards Motor Rifle Division’ was stationed here.

Lenin and Mickevicius-Kapsukas. The duo stood at Saulėtekis Alley in Vilnius from 1979 until 1990. It was made by K. Bogdanas.

The Röblinsee community, consisting of more than one hundred villas, was constructed at the start of the 20th century serving as a health resort. Following World War II, it was taken over by the Second Guard Tank Army of the Group of Soviet Forces, and access to the area was restricted to German citizens. Many of the buildings were in such poor condition that they had to undergo complete renovation before residents could return. The Officer’s house is one of the few villas that remained abandoned, with a Lenin statue standing in front of it, overlooking the village.

Lev Kerbel created this statue in 1971, and it remained in downtown Sofia until 1991. Now, it can be found in the Sculpture Park of Socialist Art in Sofia.

This marble bust was made by sculptor Matti Varik. When the work was completed, Estonia regained its independence. No one was interested in the piece any longer, and it was forgotten. It was left in the courtyard of the artist’s studio in Laagri. In 2008, it was moved to the statue garden of the Estonian History Museum in Tallinn.

Lenin as a victim of capitalism, for sale in a antiques shop in Burlgaria.

The Lenin statue at Lukiškės Square in Vilnius was erected between 1952 and 1991. The square underwent reconstruction based on V. Mikučianis’ design from 1949 to 1952. Renamed Lenin Square during the Soviet era, the statue of Lenin was placed at its center in 1953. After Lithuania regained independence in 1991, the statue was taken down amidst celebrations by the gathered crowd. The reassembled statue can now be seen at Grūtas Park.

Zeltini, located in the Latvian forest, used to be a secret Soviet missile base. During the Cold War era, ballistic missiles were kept in silos near the launch pads, and the base was frequently on high alert. In 1970, a large granite bust of Vladimir Lenin, created by sculptor G.Grundberga, was unveiled in Alūksne, a town 25km east of Zeltini. To protect it from possible destruction following the Soviet Union’s collapse, locals moved the bust to the abandoned base in August 1991.

Between 1952 and 1990, there stood a statue of Lenin at the intersection of Riia and Võru streets in Tartu. This statue, created by Estonian sculptors and architects, was the first of its kind. In 1972, it was designated as a national heritage site. After being dismantled in 1990, the statue was moved to Tartu’s central square with a placard stating ‘Socialism equals Fascism’. Despite attempts by the local government to sell it, the statue ended up in various warehouses before finally being placed in the backyard of the Museum of History in 2005. It was labeled as a ‘homeless monument’ and ‘forgotten heritage’. However, in February 2018, the statue, along with 14 others, was reerected in the museum’s backyard, now transformed into a garden.

Lernamerdz is known as “Little Cuba” in Armenia. The spirit of communism reigns in almost every house. In Soviet times, the village of Lernamerdz was one of the few places in Armenia that did not have a statue of Lenin. The villagers say that they were fairly passive communists and that there were only seven communist activists amongst them. But then, after Armenia became independent, and statues and busts of the great leader were taken down all over the country, in 1996 the people of Lernamerdz erected a basalt bust of Lenin in the middle of the village. It weighs two tonnes and is now an important part of the village and a source of great pride.

The building was initially constructed as a hospital, but in 1904 it was transformed into a prison. Those imprisoned were revolutionaries, sailors of the Tsar’s Navy and non-commissioned officers, German deserters, ‘enemies of the state’ during the Stalin era, soldiers of the Soviet army and the Latvian army. Lenin’s gaze has been fixed down the hallway since the end of World War II. Nowadays, Karosta Prison stands as the sole military prison in Europe that welcomes tourists. It is renowned as a unique and astonishing hotel globally.

In Druskininkai, we found this Lenin in Grūto parkas, a socialist realism museum with a sculpture garden of Soviet-era statues and other Soviet ideological relics from the times of the Soviet occupation.

Vladimir Lenin in Grūto parkas, a socialist realism museum with a sculpture garden of Soviet-era statues and other Soviet ideological relics from the times of the Soviet occupation.

Granite sculpture of Lenin in Memento Park in Budapest.

In Druskininkai, we found this Lenin in Grūto parkas, a socialist realism museum with a sculpture garden of Soviet-era statues and other Soviet ideological relics from the times of the Soviet occupation.

Zeltini Missile Base is nestled deep within the forests of northeastern Latvia, near the borders of Russia and Estonia. Like many former Soviet military bases, it is located in a remote area with no nearby civilization. Back in the days of Soviet rule, the Baltic States were dotted with military facilities, but Zeltini stood out due to its significant role in Cold War activities. It was among the select few bases in the region equipped to handle ballistic missiles. While exploring the complex we found this headless Lenin statue.

The old pictures of the Soviet barracks in Möhlau depict a relief with a profile of Lenin. It was believed to have disappeared when the Soviet army departed, as the remaining stele was empty. However, after twenty-five years of exposure to the elements, the top layer of the stele started to flake off, revealing the red hue of the former monument and the faint outline of Lenin’s head.

Grūto parkas in Druskininkai, a Lenin buste with unknown history.

Nestled within the lush forests and sprawling meadows near Möhlau lies a piece of history frozen in time. The remnants of a once-thriving Soviet military complex. GSSD Kaserne Möhlau. The six-meter-high Lenin mural was freshened up true to the original by a street artist. To Lenin’s right, the artist sprayed a Soviet flag in graffiti style.

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