МОРТУАРИЙ ГОРОДА ВОЛЖСКОГО В КОНТЕКСТЕ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИИ СОВЕТСКОГО ПОХОРОННОГО ОБРЯДА И ПРЕДСТАВЛЕНИЙ О СВЕТСКОЙ САКРАЛЬНОСТИ 1940-1950-Х ГГ
Authors: НАЗАРОВА Т.П. , ИВАНОВ В.А. 
Published: January 2025

Целью статьи является определение места и роли мортуария г. Волжского в трансформации похоронной обрядности и светской сакральности в СССР, а также установление точной даты его строительства. Мортуарий является уникальным образцом траурной советской архитектуры, который был возведен на небольшом кладбище города строителей Сталинградской ГЭС. Впервые на основе архивных материалов определены точные годы строительства мортуария (1955-1958 гг.), что позволило скорректировать общепринятую периодизацию трансформации траурной обрядности в СССР и выделить в ней новый этап изменений: 1941 - 1957 гг. Сделан вывод о том, что под влиянием Великой Отечественной войны в организации похорон, устройстве кладбищ наметились гуманистические тенденции, нацеленные на создание новой траурной социалистической обрядности, опирающейся на духовные традиции, религиозную обрядность. Новый подход к погребению предполагал строительство на кладбищах специальных павильонов траурных прощаний (мортуариев), напоминающих римские пантеоны и храмы.

The purpose of the article is to determine the place and role of the Volzhsky Mortuary in the transformation of funeral rites and secular sacredness in the USSR, as well as to determine the exact date of its construction. For the first time the exact years of construction of the Mortuary were determined based on archival materials (its construction started in December 1955 and completed only in 1958). This allowed to adjust the generally accepted periodization of the transformation of funeral rites in the USSR and to highlight a new stage of changes in this area: 1941-1957. The arrangement of cemeteries underwent humanistic tendencies in the field of funeral organization under the influence of the Great Patriotic War, aimed at creating a new funeral rite based on spiritual traditions, religious rites, but in a socialist version. A temporary rejection of violent desacralization of death occurred. The relevant decisions were made at the level of the highest party leadership during the War years, and as soon as 1946-1947, executive structures developed new standard cemetery projects, which assumed the construction of new ritual buildings for conducting funeral ceremonies. These pavilions for funereal meetings, outwardly reminiscent of Roman pantheons and temples, had no analogues in earlier years. It is proven that at least three such buildings were built before 1957, but only one has survived to this day, better known as the Mortuary (in the city of Volzhsky). However, the ritual part for farewell ceremonies was never developed in the Stalin era, which is why the mortuaries stood idle and were not used for their intended purpose at first. Since 1957, the ritual reforms of N.S. Khrushchev have started, with new projects for buildings for funeral assemblies and civil funeral services adopted. The fight against architectural excesses and Stalinist Empire style began, and all the subsequent funeral architecture in Soviet cemeteries was built according to these projects (utilitarian, without frills), deprived of the monumentality and solemn beauty that the Volzhsky Mortuary possesses.