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КУЛЬТУРОЛОГИЯ
УДК 008:316.722 У. К. Брумфилд
доктор философии; профессор славяноведения, Тулейнский университет, Новый Орлеан, США; e-maiL: wiLLiam.brumfieLd@gmaiL.com
ИСТОРИЧЕСКИЕ ДЕРЕВНИ РУССКОГО СЕВЕРА: СОХРАНЕНИЕ ГЛУБОКОЙ КУЛЬТУРНОЙ ПРЕЕМСТВЕННОСТИ
Русский Север сегодня - это регион контрастов: огромные практически незаселенные территории и в то же время промышленные гиганты в Череповце (сталелитейная и химическая промышленность), судостроение в Северодвинске и целлюлозно-бумажные комбинаты в пригородах Архангельска. Если посмотреть на проблему шире, возникает вопрос, может ли эта современная промышленная сила способствовать сохранению или серьезно заинтересована в сохранении остатков традиционной культуры, которая была отличительной чертой российского прошлого. В последние десятилетия население северных деревень сокращалось в результате демографических сдвигов и социально-экономической политики советского режима. Некоторые северные деревни сумели выжить, но поскольку они становятся менее жизнеспособными с экономической точки зрения, то и их культуру становится всё труднее сохранять. Это можно наблюдать в двух таких деревнях, имеющих большое значение для Севера, - Кимжа в Архангельской области и Вар-зуга в Мурманской области.
Ключевые слова: Русский Север; Кимжа; Архангельская область; Варзуга; Кольский полуостров; Мурманская область; река Мезень; река Варзуга; деревянная архитектура; Русская Православная Церковь; Белое море.
W. Cr. Brumfield
PhD; Professor of SLavic Studies, TuLane University, New OrLeans, USA; e-maiL: wiLLiam.brumfieLd@gmaiL.com
HISTORIC VILLAGES OF THE RUSSIAN NORTH: SURVIVAL OF DEEPLY ROOTED CULTURAL COHERENCE
The Russian North of today is a study in contrasts, from immense swaths of aLmost uninhabited territory to the industriaL giants of Cherepovets (steeL and chemicaLs), Severodvinsk (ship buiLding), and the outskirts of ArkhangeLsk (paper miLLs). The broader question is whether this modern industriaL power can sustain - or is
seriousLy interested in sustaining - the remnants of traditional. cuLture that was such a distinctive part of Russia's past. In recent decades, viLLages throughout the north have been depopulated as the resuLt of demographic shifts and the economic and sociaL policies of the Soviet regime. Some survive, yet as northern viLLages become Less economicaLLy viabLe, their cuLture aLso becomes more difficuLt to sustain. An insight into this issue can be found in the situations of two surviving viLLages - Kimzha (in ArkhangeLsk obLast') and Varzuga (in Murmansk obLast') - that are cuLturaLLy among the most significant in the North.
Key words: Russian North; Kimzha; Arkhangelsk obLast; Varzuga; KoLa PeninsuLa; Murmansk obLast'; Mezen' River; Varzuga River; wooden architecture; Russian Orthodox Church; White Sea.
Introduction
As in the past, the Russian North of today is a study in contrasts, from immense swaths of almost uninhabited territory to the industrial giants of Cherepovets (steel and chemicals), Severodvinsk (ship building), and the outskirts of Arkhangelsk (paper mills). The broader question is whether this modern industrial power can sustain - or is seriously interested in sustaining - the remnants of traditional culture that was such a distinctive part of Russia's-past. In recent decades, villages throughout the north have been depopulated as the result of demographic shifts and the economic and social policies of the Soviet regime. Some survive, yet as northern villages become less economically viable, their culture also becomes more difficult to sustain. An insight into this-issue can be found in the situations of two surviving villages - Kimzha (in the Arkhangelsk region) and Varzuga (in the Murmansk region) - that are culturally among the most significant in the North. Both are close to the Arctic Circle.
Kimzha Village
(Arkhangelsk oblast')
Within European Russia, the "North" has traditionally been defined as the area located along a water network extending from the White Lake to the White Sea. Inhabited by Finnish tribes before the arrival of the first Slavic explorers and traders from Novgorod by the 11th century, the north served as a place of spiritual solace for the avatars of Muscovite monasticism during the 14th and 15th centuries. At the same time, the wealth of its forests and lakes and its position astride trading routes led to the creation of towns that became repositories of traditional Russian values in arts and crafts.
The village of Kimzha is situated near the Mezen River, one of many waterways that drain the north Eurasian land mass. Near its mouth the river is flanked by two towns, Kamenka and Mezen, both about 5,000 in population. Mezen is the administrative center, while Kamenka has the region's largest employer, the lumber factory. One of the threats to the region's economic viability is the silting of the Mezen River system. This is a problem throughout the Russian north. Formerly active rivers are no longer dredged, and common wisdom has it that rampant, unmanaged logging has released a large amount of soil into the waters.
But Kimzha, whose existence as a Russian settlement can be dated to the turn of the 16th century, survives. Its population varies between winter and summer: a couple of hundred in the winter, with a hundred or so more at various times in the summer, when relatives return to visit their elders. Its primary landmark is a church, dedicated in 1763 to the Hodigitria Icon of Mary.
For much of the year, Kimzha lies buried under severe winter conditions, stiff winds and treacherous snow drifts. A year-round transportation option is by a small plane from the Arkhangelsk Vaskovo airport to Mezen, and from there by car (and boat) to Kimzha. At present, an all-year road is under construction (presumably because of increased interest in petroleum exploration) that will eventually open the way to Arkhangelsk. The road is almost complete to Kimzha.
In the meantime, Kimzha continues to exist, tenuously. The place has a certain magic, perhaps best represented by the aquamarine shimmer of the aurora borealis that can be seen from here. And the village itself makes an extraordinary impression, with its massive log houses built during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Although some of the houses had been abandoned or shuttered for the winter, this is a functioning, living environment.
Kimzha has retained a number of residents in their 30s, with young children. Some are employed by the village administration, others live on the remnants of the village agriculture, and others have connections with the lumber plant in Kamenka. Although the former dairy "kolhoz", surrounded by rusting machinery, for which there is no fuel, is a shadow of its Soviet size, a large part of the dairy herd has reappeared through individual ownership. The villagers are also sustained by the forest (berries, mushrooms) and waterways (fishing). Nonetheless, modern life requires
certain amenities, and electricity is the primary issue. Since there are no power lines to this remote part of the country, Kimzha obtains its limited supply of electricity from generators whose fuel must be laboriously transported in a small barge across the Mezen River from the larger village of Dorogorskoe.
With so many complications, the preservation of Kimzha - the buildings and the community - seems remarkable. Many former residents of Kimzha have left for work elsewhere, and this emigration has enabled Kimzha to retain its age-old dimensions. The very absence of roads has also protected the integrity of the environment. However, these factors alone cannot explain the survival of Kimzha, when hundreds of other villages throughout the north have vanished. It appears that the physical existence of a church plays a major role in the village's endurance.
The Russian north is rich in surviving examples of log churches such as the famous Transfiguration Church on Kizhi Island. But the Kimzha Church of the Hodegetria Icon is the sole surviving example of its type (high central tower and cupola closely flanked by four small cupolas) which was created by a group of carpenters apparently active only in this part of the North. Begun in the early 18th century and consecrated only in 1763, the Kimzha church has survived decades of neglect. In the 1870s its stout logs were covered with plank siding, painted white with blue and green trim. At the same time a bell tower with plank siding was erected over the west porch.
Soviet restoration practice frowned on such 19th-century cladding, and in the 1980s some of the planks were removed. A lack of funds halted the process, and the church remained as a textbook display, half with plank siding and half without. Despite the lack of a resident priest, a dedicated church committee succeeded in 1999 in having the padlock removed from the church, which was then re-consecrated. For a few years thereafter the church was open for prayer in the morning, but recent restoration problems have forced them to move to a small house for services.
As in the past, restoration of the Kimzha church has proceeded in fits and starts. In 2005 the church was dismantled in order to replace rotting logs. Only now, eleven years later, is the rebuilding coming to a conclusion. The exterior is completely covered with new plank siding. From a historical perspective it is fortunate that I was able to photograph the church, exterior and interior, in both winter and summer of 2000, before the restoration process began.
Despite its difficulties, Kimzha has, for the time being, found a delicate balance between past and present. But it is not timelessly idyllic. When former residents return for the summer, more urban elements appear in the culture of the village. Television is widespread, and life here shares much with life anywhere in the country. A slowly increasing number of artists and specialists in the historic culture of the North visit Kimzha, and tour companies talk of the possibility of building a small hotel. The completion of road construction might bring new resources, but also problems from new money in an impoverished rural setting.
Varzuga (Murmansk oblast')
On roughly the same parallel as Kimzha, but several hundred kilometers to the west is the ancient village of Varzuga, located on the river of the same name in the southeastern part of the Kola Peninsula. Its population is officially given as approximately 900, although this figure also includes other villages in the area. Like Kimzha, Varzuga has one of the most dramatic architectural landmarks in the north: the Church of the Dormition of the Virgin, built of logs in 1674.
In comparison with Kimzha, the economic picture in Varzuga seems stronger. At first glance Varzuga also appears isolated, with very limited service to the regional center of Umba over a largely unpaved coastal road. Conditions have improved over the past decade, however, and there is now an upgraded dirt road from Varzuga to Umba. And from Umba there is a paved road to the large rail station at Kandalaksha.
Another advantage for Varzuga is its reputation as a prime location for salmon fishing. Sportsmen from Russia and abroad can buy deluxe fishing packages that include ready access to the town (helicopter is an option) and well-stocked cabins farther up the Varzuga River. Sports tourism has become a boon to many residents in the town and is closely related to a more basic asset in the village: the fishery. The continued viability of the fishery has been due in no small measure to the entrepreneurial talents of its director, Sviatoslav Kaliuzhin, who has maintained economic opportunity in the area. In addition, at the beginning of this year the energy company Kolenergo connected Varzuga to the regional power grid in Umba. This means a dependable electricity supply, something that Kimzha can only long for at the moment.
Like Kimzha, Varzuga had its share of traditional wooden houses. Paradoxically, with a relatively favorable economic position, residents in the village seem less willing to maintain traditional log houses built several decades ago. New houses - some of log construction and some of masonry - are constantly rising to replace the old. As in Kimzha it appears that the existence of a church - the Church of the Dormition in Varzuga -is important to the survival and preservation of small northern towns. For all of its resources, what makes Varzuga distinctive is the wooden Church of the Dormition of the Virgin, which soars 34 meters above the high right bank of the Varzuga River. Remarkable for its construction logic as well as its beauty, the basic log structure from 1674 has withstood the elements in its exposed location. A number of modifications were made in the 19th century, and both exterior and interior were clad in plank siding. A restoration completed in 1973 returned the upper part of the church to its original appearance.
On the interior the icon screen was dismantled for restoration, and work slowly continues on the main surviving icons, which date from the 17th and 18th centuries. The main place of worship for Varzuga is the adjacent 19th century Church of Saint Afanasiy. It is called a "winter church", because its lower form allowed it to be heated for year-round use. There are also two smaller churches on the left bank (the Church of Saint Nicholas and the Church of Apostles Peter and Paul).
But even within this bucolic setting, there can be sharp controversies, such as the one that arose in regard to the rebuilding of the bell tower near the Dormition Church. The original tower adhered to the octagonal form traditional in the north. The new tower, provided by Kaliuzhin and blessed by the Bishop of Murmansk, is in a very different, squat shape that has been criticized by preservationists. The local priest, Father Mitrofan (Badanin), has explained the church's position on the unusual structure (needed to support a heavier weight of bells), but the dissonance remains.
Conclusion
Both Kimzha and Varzuga are living environments that exist in a rapidly changing world with new hopes and expectations. They are not museum displays. At the same time there are legitimate concerns about preserving their traditional wooden architecture under the pressures of contemporary lifestyles. Although each village will survive in some form,
Russia can ill afford to lose the aesthetic and cultural traditions so richly embodied in these two outposts of the north.
LITERATURE
Краткое историческое описание приходов и церквей Архангельской епархии. 1895. Вып. III. Брумфилд У. К. Кимжа глазами американца // Живая Старина. 2002. 1 (37). Brumfield W. C. Architecture at the End of the Earth: Photographing the Russian North. Durham : Duke University Press, 2016.
