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News
01 September 2026
Almost everyone knows the Golden Ring of Russia: even those who have never been there have heard about its ancient cities, golden domes, and monasteries.
23 July 2026
As part of the exhibition “The Wonderful Source: Summer in the General Headquarters”, visitors will be offered a collection of French Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artworks from the holdings of Shchukin and Morozov collections.
GOLDEN RING VS. SILVER RING OF RUSSIA
01 September 2026
Almost everyone knows the Golden Ring of Russia: even those who have never been there have heard about its ancient cities, golden domes, and monasteries. However, few people know that this iconic route has an alternative — the Silver Ring, which runs through the country's northwestern regions. This northern path can offer a fundamentally new kind of experience. Instead of the customary monastic coziness, travelers here will find stern fortresses, Varangian traces, and unique architecture.
The famous Golden Ring owes its birth to Soviet reporter Yuri Bychkov. In the late 1960s, he made a journey through ancient Russian settlements and published a series of travel essays, metaphorically calling them the "golden fund" of the nation's cultural heritage. Today, this circular tour covers key centers of North-Eastern Rus with their masterpieces of ancient architecture. The traditional itinerary includes eight locations. Travelers visit Sergiev Posad with its majestic Lavra, Pereslavl-Zalessky on Lake Pleshcheyevo, Rostov Veliky with its white-stone Kremlin and belfry, as well as Yaroslavl and Kostroma, renowned for their ancient monasteries and merchant arcades. Completing the classic list are Ivanovo with its unique Constructivism, the preserved Suzdal, and Vladimir, which has kept the legendary Golden Gate and numerous cathedrals.
In contrast to the popular Golden Ring, the country's northwestern borders are united by a more concise and distinctive route — the Silver Ring. Its foundation lies in the lands of the former Novgorod Republic and ancient merchant centers. The tourist ring forms a kind of necklace of outposts, monasteries, and noble estates. The historical core of the route is shaped by Veliky Novgorod with its oldest St. Sophia Cathedral and Yaroslav's Court, as well as Pskov, famous for its Kremlin and the Mirozhsky Monastery with its frescoes. Also included are the most ancient Staraya Ladoga, the European-styled Vyborg with its castle and the rocky park of Monrepos, the palatial Gatchina, Kingisepp, and the border fortress of Ivangorod. The poetic name of the route serves as a logical continuation of its "golden" counterpart, emphasizing the austere yet equally noble beauty of northern architecture.
The difference between these destinations lies not so much in geography as in their mentality. The Golden Ring route immerses you in the heart of Vladimir-Suzdal and Moscow lands with their ornate churches, grand monastery complexes, and spiritual shrines. The Silver Ring is the realm of stark northern nature, medieval outposts, and Scandinavian motifs. Together, these routes harmoniously contrast with each other, complementing one another.