Orelovich’s House

«The building was constructed in 1910. The two-storey brick mansion is located in front of the former Chita Women’s Gymnasium and was once owned by I.V. Orelovich, a court councillor. After nationalisation, the building housed Far Eastern Buro of the Central Committee of the Russian Communist Party (RKP(b)) – Dalburo and the Representative Office of the Republic of China (later renamed the Consulate). Since the late 1950s the building has housed Transbaikal Branch of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (SBRAS), currently known as the Institute of Natural Resources, Ecology, and Cryology of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (INREC SB RAS). 

The overlay carving on the panel-framed main entrance door is of particular interest. During the years of operation of the building the 2nd floor balcony was removed. Preserved in the interiors are stucco moldings shaped as ceiling panels, friezes along the ceiling perimeters, forged openwork lattice, and staircase railings. There are two memorial plaques on the building’s facade: the first one bears the inscription: “This house hosted the Dalburo of the Central Committee of the RKP(b) in 1920-1924”, while the second reads: “A prominent geologist, organizer of science and corresponding member of Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union F.P. Krendelev worked here in 1981-1987».