Hotel Moskva (Moscow)

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The Hotel Moskva was a major hotel located in central Moscow, Russia, just opposite the Moscow City Hall. The fourteen-story building was designed by Alexey Shchusev in the Stalinist-classical style and opened in 1935. It was lavishly decorated with objets d'art and mosaics by the finest Soviet artists (such as Eugene Lanceray).

The old hotel was notable for its four facades in quite different architectural styles. According to legend, four alternative designs were submitted to Stalin for his approval of this prestigious central Moscow project. He initialled the covering page simply as approved; since no one had the courage to ask him which of the styles he preferred, they were all incorporated.

The Hotel Moskva was demolished in 2004 to be replaced by an underground parking garage, atop which a modern replica of the hotel was erected. The ground floor of the hotel Moskva contains an entrance to the Moscow Metro station Okhotny Ryad. A drawing of the Hotel Moskva is featured on the logo for Stolichnaya vodka.

[edit] Trivia

• Hotel Moskva is pictured on the bottle of Stolichnaya vodka, one of the most popular vodka brand of the Soviet times. [1]