Bulgakov Museum

The memorial apartment of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov on Bolshaya Sadovaya Street has become one of the most attractive cultural sites of the capital. The legendary “bad apartment” from the novel “The Master and Margarita” exists in reality and is open to visitors. The museum space preserves the atmosphere of the era, the writer’s personal belongings, and the secrets of his creative path.

History of the creation of the museum and the revenue house

Pigitt House: an Art Nouveau architectural monument

The building at 10 Bolshaya Sadovaya Street was erected at the beginning of the twentieth century at the request of tobacco magnate Ilya Pigitt. Architects Antonin Milkov and Edmund Yuditsky designed a revenue apartment building in the Art Nouveau style, with decorative elements typical of that time. Initially, the merchant planned to place here a wing of his “Dukat” factory, but the city authorities prohibited the construction of an industrial enterprise in the central part of the city. The façade of the building on the Bolshaya Sadovaya side has five floors, and the central arch leads into an inner courtyard surrounded by four-story wings. Apartments in the new building were rented out to members of the creative intelligentsia: lawyers, professors, actors, and artists. At various times, avant-garde painter Pyotr Konchalovsky and theatre artist Georgy Yakulov lived here. The house was visited by Boris Pasternak, Vladimir Mayakovsky, Sergei Prokofiev, and Feodor Chaliapin.

Bulgakov in a communal apartment

From 1921 to 1924, Mikhail Bulgakov and his wife Tatyana occupied a room in apartment No. 50. After the revolution, the house was nationalized and divided into communal apartments. Living conditions were far from comfortable: eighteen residents shared a common kitchen, the writer was surrounded by noisy neighbors, frequent quarrels, and the everyday reality of communal life. These very impressions formed the basis of many of Bulgakov’s works. In this room he wrote “The White Guard”, “A Young Doctor’s Notebook”, and “The Fatal Eggs”. Later, the apartment on Bolshaya Sadovaya became the prototype of that very “bad apartment” where the mysterious Woland and his retinue settled in the novel “The Master and Margarita”.

The path to opening the state museum

The apartment attracted admirers of the writer’s work from the 1970s, although there was no official museum at that time. In 1983, the first small exhibition appeared. In 1990, the Bulgakov Foundation was established, and exhibitions, concerts, and discussions began to be held. The house turned into a people’s museum, where visitors came daily despite the building’s dilapidated condition. The state museum opened in 2007. The core of the collection was made up of items donated by the writer’s nieces, Varvara Svetlaya and Elena Zemskaya. In 2010, the collection was enriched with items from Bulgakov’s apartment in Nashchokinsky Lane.

The museum’s exhibition: rooms and artifacts

Cloakroom and entrance hall

Crossing the threshold of the apartment, visitors find themselves in the atmosphere of the past. The cloakroom presents antique items:

• A leather medical bag with which the young Bulgakov visited patients as a zemstvo doctor
• The writer’s original coat rack, fixed at its historical height
• Vintage hats, suitcases, and umbrellas from the early twentieth century
• A table inlaid with marble and mother-of-pearl from the Bulgakovs’ entrance hall

The Blue Study: a recreated workspace

The room has been carefully recreated from old photographs and contemporaries’ recollections. It is a copy of Mikhail Afanasyevich’s last study from his apartment in Nashchokinsky Lane. Here original items are gathered:

• A combined cabinet-bureau with a semicircular door, combining the functions of a chest of drawers, a secretaire, and a wardrobe
• A tube radio receiver, model 6N-1, produced in the 1930s
• Comfortable armchairs and soft furnishings from the writer’s era
• A typewritten manuscript of the play “Molière” with Bulgakov’s autograph

Bulgakov’s room: the birthplace of masterpieces

This room has preserved the walls, parquet, and window latches that remember the writer. The modest furnishings include: A massive writing desk that belonged to the writer’s uncle, Nikolai Mikhailovich Pokrovsky, which served as a prototype for the image of Professor Preobrazhensky in “Heart of a Dog”. A bookshelf with sphinxes — an authentic purchase made by the Bulgakov spouses in the early 1920s. Numerous books, which the writer passionately loved and constantly bought, are placed on the desk, bed, sofa, and in the wardrobe.

The communal kitchen: a source of inspiration

The authentic setting of the communal kitchen conveys the spirit of the era. Here the eighteen residents of the apartment quarreled, cooked on primus stoves, and burned valuable parquet in the stove. The collection includes:

• Primus stoves and kerosene lamps
• Milk cans and enamelware
• Stalin-era teapots and samovars
• Vintage irons and sugar tongs
• A 1930s sideboard
• A photograph of a neighbor who became the prototype of Annushka-the-Plague

The living room: pre-revolutionary comfort

The interior recreates the atmosphere of serenity in which the writer grew up. The furnishings exactly match the descriptions from the novel “The White Guard” and the play “The Days of the Turbins”:

• Antique furniture with decorative details
• A nineteenth-century piano with an open score
• A large sideboard with beautiful tableware
• Engravings and a fabric lampshade

Classical music concerts and literary readings are held in this room.

The editorial office of the “Gudok” newspaper

The exhibition is recreated from archival photographs and is dedicated to Bulgakov’s journalistic work. In the early 1920s, the writer collaborated with the newspaper “Gudok” as a satirical columnist. His colleagues included Ilya Ilf, Yevgeny Petrov, Yuri Olesha, and Vladimir Mayakovsky. The room displays archival documents and issues of newspapers and magazines from that time.

The White Hall and exhibition spaces

The room is decorated in the style of the early twentieth century, with a piano, ceiling stucco, and antique furniture. Today it hosts temporary exhibitions dedicated to artists and cultural figures of the era. Concerts, lectures, and seminars are held here. The walls of the long corridor are used to display paintings by artists, theatre posters, photographs, and contemporaries’ recollections of the writer.

Unique features of the museum

Electronic exhibition

This innovative solution takes the form of flat monitors in antique frames hung on the walls of the rooms. Visitors view changing slides with more than five hundred documents: photographs, manuscripts, the writer’s letters, and excerpts from stage productions and films based on his works.

A living attendant: the cat Behemoth

An unusual museum employee is a large black cat named Behemoth, after the character in the novel “The Master and Margarita”. The animal moves freely around the rooms, allows itself to be photographed, and is considered a full-fledged guardian of the exhibition. Visitors love encountering him in the most unexpected places.

Theatre space

In 2011, a cultural space for staging plays was opened at the museum. The creators of the stage experiment with forms, invite renowned and emerging actors, and hold premieres. The repertoire includes classic plays based on Bulgakov’s works and avant-garde physical theatre productions by contemporary directors. Interactive tours are organized to allow visitors to immerse themselves more deeply in the writer’s world.

Secret rooms

During special tours, visitors are given access to closed rooms of the museum. These spaces hold additional secrets and artifacts related to the life of the house and its inhabitants.

The cultural life of the museum

Café “Buffet 302-bis”

During museum opening hours, an authentic café styled after old Moscow operates on the premises. Visitors come here after tours or before performances to enjoy specialty tea or aromatic coffee and to purchase the writer’s books and original souvenirs.

Contemporary art exhibitions

Several times a year, the museum space is transformed into an art gallery. Exhibitions of works by contemporary artists are held here, creating a dialogue between eras.

Festive events

The Day of Wishes Fulfilled is held annually on the last Saturday of August. The free celebration program includes themed tours, performances, and a ceremony for opening a time capsule. Bulgakov’s birthday is celebrated on May 15. The festivities begin with the laying of flowers at the writer’s grave at Novodevichy Cemetery, continue with exhibitions and performances at the museum, and end with a celebratory cake.

Excursion programs

The museum organizes a variety of tours:

1. Overview tours of the apartment with visits to secret rooms and a story about the history of the house
2. Walking tours of Bulgakov’s locations in the capital, including Patriarch’s Ponds
3. Bus excursions to locations connected with the writer’s life and work
4. The route “In the Footsteps of the Characters of ‘The Master and Margarita’” — a two-hour walk through the places described in the book
5. Theatricalized tours with interactive elements

Interesting facts about the museum

• This is the first and only state museum of Mikhail Bulgakov in Russia
• The apartment windows look out onto the very view described in “Theatrical Novel”
• In summer, the veranda is used for exhibitions, and in winter, the building’s back staircase
• Murals with scenes from Bulgakov’s works have been preserved in the stairwell
• Bronze sculptures of Korovyev and Behemoth, created by Alexander Rukavishnikov, stand in the courtyard
• Round and square windows under the corridor ceiling were used for daylight illumination to save electricity

Practical information for visitors

Address and opening hours

Address: Moscow, Bolshaya Sadovaya Street, Building 10, Entrance 6, Apartment 50
Coordinates: 55.767313, 37.593728 Opening hours:

• Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday: 12:00–19:00
• Thursday: 14:00–21:00
• Monday: closed

Admission fees

• Adult ticket: 450 rubles
• Concession ticket: 150 rubles
• Family ticket (2 adults + 2 children): 1000 rubles
• Moscow schoolchildren and children under 7: free
• Amateur photography without flash and tripod: free
• Professional photography: 5000 rubles for 1.5 hours
• Overview tour: 350–700 rubles

It is recommended to purchase tickets in advance online on the official website of the museum.

How to get there

Metro:

• Mayakovskaya Station — 6–8 minutes on foot
• Pushkinskaya Station — 12–15 minutes on foot

Surface transport: “Metro Mayakovskaya” stop, bus routes Landmark: a monument to Korovyev and the cat Behemoth is installed near the entrance.

Photo spots in the museum

The entrance of the “bad apartment”

The walls are painted with scenes from Bulgakov’s works. The atmospheric space with historical details provides a unique backdrop for photographs.

The museum courtyard

A picturesque bench, an old lantern, and bronze figures of the characters from “The Master and Margarita” are favorite selfie spots for tourists. Sculptures of Korovyev and Behemoth were installed in 2011 for the writer’s anniversary.

Interior spaces

The cat Behemoth appears in different rooms of the museum, creating opportunities for unexpected photo sessions. The cloakroom with antique coat racks from different eras also attracts fans of atmospheric shots.

Recommendations for a visit

• Plan your visit in advance, especially on weekends and public holidays
• Allow at least an hour and a half to two hours to explore the exhibition
• Combine a visit to the museum with a walk around nearby Bulgakov landmarks: Patriarch’s Ponds and Tverskaya Street
• Check the schedule of concerts and performances on the official website
• Come to themed events on the writer’s birthday and the Day of Wishes Fulfilled
• Visit the café “Buffet 302-bis” for full immersion in the atmosphere

Conclusion

The Bulgakov Museum on Bolshaya Sadovaya is a unique place where history intertwines with literature and reality with mysticism. The “bad apartment” preserves the spirit of the era and allows visitors to touch the creative world of the great writer. A visit to the museum leaves unforgettable impressions, creates a sense of time travel, and provides a deep understanding of the works of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov. It is a living cultural space where every artifact tells its own story, and the atmosphere inspires reflection on the eternal themes of creativity, love, and fate.