The Mykhailo Kotsiubynsky Literary Memorial Museum-Reserve is the estate where the writer spent the last and most prolific 15 years of his life. A small one-storey wooden house stands amidst a garden at 3 Kotsiubynskoho Street in Chernihiv. Here Kotsiubynsky wrote «Intermezzo», «Apple Blossom», «Fata Morgana» and «Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors», which brought him worldwide fame.
The Chernihiv Period
Kotsiubynsky settled in this house with his family in the summer of 1898. His living room became the hub of the city's cultural life: literary «saturdays» were held here with Borys Hrinchenko, Mykola Voronyi, Mykola Cherniavskyi, Volodymyr Samiylenko and the artist Mykhailo Zhuk. Mykola Lysenko played his melodies on the piano that still stands in the room. The writer was a mentor to young talents — Pavlo Tychyna, Vasyl Ellan-Blakytny, Arkadiy Kazka.
In 1909, the Swedish slavist Alfred Jensen, a translator of Kotsiubynsky's works who was gathering materials for a book about Hetman Mazepa, stayed here. In his final years, the living room also served as the writer's study.
What to See
The memorial rooms recreate the family's setting: simple belongings, a writing desk, furniture. Two bookcases house the writer's library of over 1,500 volumes, including first editions and books with autographs by Franko, Nechuy-Levytsky, Panas Myrny, Hrinchenko. The dining room features Hutsul and Moldovan folk art items collected by Kotsiubynsky.
The museum was founded in September 1934 for the writer's 70th anniversary, with his younger brother Khoma becoming its first director. In 1983, a new three-storey literary exhibition building designed by Anatoliy Haidamaka was opened next door. Every year on September 17, on Kotsiubynsky's birthday, his namesake regional literary and art prize is awarded here.
The Garden and the War
In front of the house stand the writer's bust and the Kotsiubynsky memorial garden. On March 6, 2022, during the siege of Chernihiv, mortar shrapnel damaged the windows, walls, ceiling and the memorial piano, cracks appeared in the foundation, and fragments struck the 124-year-old spruce tree planted by the writer himself. The museum has been restored and is once again welcoming visitors.
Kotsiubynsky is buried alongside his wife Vira on Boldyna Hora — a walk there leads via Boldyna Hora.
How to Get There
The museum is located at 3 Kotsiubynskoho Street, not far from the centre of Chernihiv. It is open daily from 9:00 to 17:00, and from 10:00 on Saturdays and Sundays, though it is best to check the schedule before visiting.
