A new book by Ekaterina Boltunova and Galina Egorova

A new book "Territory and history: late Soviet projects of «Hero Cities» and the «Golden Ring»" by the Head of the Laboratory Ekaterina Boltunova and Research Fellow Galina Egorova was published in December 2022 (Publishing House "Kuchkovo Pole").

The study was carried out with the financial support of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR) within the framework of the scientific project No. 21-09-43050 (Competition for the best projects of fundamental scientific research on the topic "Soviet era: history and heritage (on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the formation of the USSR)").

Abstract:

In later 1960s, two important state-supported projects were started in the USSR — «Hero Cities» and the «Golden Ring». They had a significant impact on social and political life and largely shaped the present-day understanding of a whole range of categories dealing with cultural heritage and historical memory. The book examines the history of the two projects within a single context. Having arised as a response to societal demand in the post-war USSR, both «Hero Cities» and the «Golden Ring» were shaped to suit the logic of the party propaganda, promoting a certain social and political agenda, allotting symbolic resources and providing opportunities for a number of people. At the same time, both the ideas behind the projects and some of their implementation strategies at a closer look are explicitly non-Soviet.

Book's Content (In Russian) (PDF, 64 Kb)