Privolzhsky District: Churches, Art and Volga Views

In Plyos, you’ll encounter views of the Volga, landscape painting and churches dating back several centuries. From Sobornaya Hill, the view stretches across the Volga to the historic centre. The museum and its exhibitions offer different ways to explore regional crafts and Russian landscape painting. Visitors exploring the town according to their interests can distinguish between crafts, painting, architectural history and town views.

Crafts and Landscape Painting

The Plyos State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve presents exhibitions at the Landscape Museum. The museum-reserve’s exhibition programme includes “Crafts of the Ivanovo Region”. It features weaving and embroidery, Palekh and Kholuy lacquer miniatures, and a jewellery collection. Textiles, lacquer miniatures and jewellery offer different insights into regional crafts.

The Landscape Museum in Plyos displays works by Russian landscape painters from the second half of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century. Unlike the exhibition on crafts, this one focuses on landscape painting. Together, the two themes offer distinct ways to explore art: through crafted objects and materials in one case, and through paintings and their historical period in the other.

Churches and Their Architectural History

The Dormition Cathedral on Sobornaya Hill is the oldest church in the town. Its main building was erected in 1699 on the site of a wooden church of the same name that had burned down. In the 18th century, a tent-roofed bell tower was added; the church was decorated with murals that have survived to this day. It is also depicted in Isaac Levitan’s paintings “Tikhaya obitel” and “Vecherний zvon”.

The Church of the Resurrection on Levitan Hill was also built in 1699. In 1982, it was moved to Plyos from the village of Bilyukovo in Ilyinsky District, Ivanovo Oblast. It should not be confused with the stone Church of the Resurrection at the Market Square: built in 1817 on the site of a wooden church, it is in the Neoclassical style and has a Nativity chapel.

The Church of Saint Barbara the Great Martyr stands on the site of a lost wooden church of the same name. It is in the mature Neoclassical style and is decorated with 19th-century murals. The Trinity Church, in turn, was built in 1808 on the site of a wooden church in the Baroque style; it also has 19th-century murals. The Vvedenskaya Church dates from 1828, is in the Late Neoclassical style and was intended for winter services.

Hills, Lanes and the Volga

Remains of the rampart of Plyos’s historic fortress can still be seen on Sobornaya Hill. The hill offers views of the Volga and the historic centre. A walk through the old lanes takes you past houses with ornately decorated window frames. The views of the town differ: from the hill, the river and townscape take centre stage, while the lanes draw attention to the details of the houses.

Things to Do in Plyos and Milovka

Things to do associated with Plyos include taking a boat trip on the Volga. Check availability before your trip. The Milaya Gora tourist and recreational centre is located in the village of Milovka in Privolzhsky District, Ivanovo Oblast. The centre includes a children’s play area. This means that, alongside Plyos’s art and architecture, visitors can also explore leisure activities in Milovka.

Discover more destinations: Ivanovo, Privolzhsky District, Privolzhsky District, Teykovsky District, Ivanovskiy District, Shuya, Engels District, Lezhnevsky District

Go to the main travel overview: Ivanovo Oblast.