Lenin Mausoleum

Lenin Mausoleum, monumental tomb in Moscow holding the embalmed body of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin. It was designed by Alexei Shchusev and completed in 1930.

The Lenin Mausoleum occupies an ambiguous position among great architectural structures. To some, the highly polished, ziggurat-like mausoleum is an eternal reminder of a past better forgotten; to others, it is an immortal monument to a cherished history and triumphant leader. Shchusev (1873–1949) was commissioned to design and build the mausoleum in a short space of time, and initially he erected a temporary wooden structure near the Kremlin wall in Moscow’s Red Square, where the stone tomb is now located. His plan was based on a cube, representative of eternity. A primary consideration was the need for a space that allowed a steady progression, from one side to the other, of the many people wishing to pay their respects to their dead leader. The initial wooden structure was replaced by a larger mausoleum, still wooden, with a stepped pyramidal form; there was a platform at its pinnacle from which party officials could make speeches.

Eventually, the mausoleum was rebuilt in stone. Shchusev was experimenting with Constructivism while adhering to the example of ancient monuments. The tomb’s skeleton consists of reinforced concrete, and the walls are brick faced with highly polished marble, labradorite, porphyry, and granite, creating a somber pattern of red and black throughout. The original floor plan was largely unchanged, with visitors entering through the main entrance and descending down a stairway into the memorial hall. They are guided around three sides of the glass sarcophagus before ascending stairs to the right of the hall and exiting through a door in the wall of the mausoleum. Shchusev’s design was considered a great success, and he was subsequently awarded the Stalin Prize and the Order of Lenin.