Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Empire

The building on Fontanka Embankment was built in the 1830s. Together with the Alexandrinsky Theater, Zodchie Rossi Street and Lomonosov Square, it is an integral part of the Ostrovsky Square ensemble. From 1847 to 1917, it housed the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and from 1925, the building was occupied by the Lenizdat printing house, and later it was used again by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In 1862, the building was severely damaged by fire, but it was completely reconstructed to its original appearance. An important period in the history of the building was the years of the blockade, when this house turned into an important defensive node - all the windows were walled up and became loopholes. The building was regularly shelled and bombed, but it was reconstructed after the war. The architectural and artistic solution of the courtyard facades is smooth painted plaster, the material and finish of the basement is limestone.