The House on the Embankment
The Government Building on Bersenevskaya Embankment (globally known as the "House on the Embankment," designed by Boris Iofan, 1931) is a monumental Constructivist residential complex opposite the Kremlin. Engineered as a self-contained "commune-city" for the Soviet political, cultural, and military elite, it became a tragic symbol of the Great Purge and Moscow's most myth-laden residential address.
The legend
Danger Level: Red (Deaths or disappearances are tied to the location) Urban folklore dubbed the colossal gray complex a "trap for the elite" and a sanctuary of restless spirits. Legends tell of phantom shadows of executed marshals and commissars roaming the dim hallways, alongside midnight sounds of heavy boots, ringing rotary phones, and eerie gramophone melodies drifting from sealed rooms. Central to the mythology is the mysterious "11th entrance," which contains no apartments; folklore claims it served as a covert NKVD surveillance hub riddled with hidden listening posts and shafts where residents vanished overnight.
What actually happened?
The building's ominous aura is grounded in documented historical tragedy. During the Great Terror, over 700 residents (nearly a third of the building's adult population) were arrested, executed, or sent to the Gulag, leaving whole apartment blocks sealed shut overnight. The infamous "11th entrance" had no residential units purely due to architectural geometry and utility routing, though the building's administration and security staff were indeed entirely staffed by state security officers.
History
Constructed between 1928 and 1931, the complex housed 505 apartments, the Rykov Club (now the Variety Theatre), the Udarnik cinema, a clinic, a library, a gymnasium, a dining hall, and a grocery store, providing complete self-sufficiency. It acquired its permanent moniker following the publication of Yuri Trifonov's famous 1976 novella The House on the Embankment. In 1989, an official historical museum was founded in one of the apartments by longtime resident Tamara Ter-Egiazaryan (now part of the GULAG History Museum).
Where is it?
The complex occupies an entire block on Bolotny Island in central Moscow at 2 Serafimovicha Street (facing both Bersenevskaya and Bolotnaya embankments), directly across the river from the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.
Can you visit?
Yes. The building remains an active residential complex with secure locked entryways, but the inner courtyards are open to pedestrians. The "House on the Embankment" Museum operates inside Entrance No. 1 and is accessible with standard museum tickets. The exterior facades and courtyards feature dozens of commemorative plaques and "Last Address" memorial markers honoring victims of the purges.
The Villisca Axe Murder House
On the night of 10 June 1912 eight people were killed with an axe in this Iowa house: Josiah and Sarah Moore, their four children, and two visiting girls. The killer was never found and the case remains open. The house has been restored to its 1912 condition — no electricity, no plumbing — and can be booked for overnight stays. Those who stay most often report children's voices and objects falling.
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