Askania-Nova. Letters from the Earthly Paradise

More than 300 photographs, archival documents, newsreels and contemporary interviews about one of the world’s oldest biosphere acclimatization reserves “Askania-Nova”.

through 09.11.2025

The exhibition "Askania-Nova. Letters from the Earthly Paradise" introduces viewers to the history of the unique biosphere reserve "Askania-Nova", located in the Kherson region. This is a joint project of the State Museum and Exhibition Center ROSPHOTO and the P.K. Kozlov Apartment Museum – a structural division of the S.I. Vavilov Institute of the History of Natural Science and Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, whose collection became the basis of the exhibition.

The exhibition provides an opportunity to learn little-known facts about the region and the famous reserve, to see archival photographs of rare animal species: Przewalski's horse, saiga antelope, goitered gazelle (harasult), bustard, flamingo. The history of the reserve is connected with the amazing destinies of courageous and hard-working people of the Fein and Falz-Fein family clan, who created this paradise in the steppe, as well as the traveler and ethnographer Pyotr Kuzmich Kozlov – the discoverer of the dead Tangut city of Khara-Khoto, a student and follower of the famous naturalist, geographer and traveler Nikolai Mikhailovich Przewalski.

Askania-Nova — a zoo, untouched steppe, arboretum, pond and artificial swamp, natural history museum, scientific laboratories, library, photo negative library — has come a long way over the years of its history. This is one of the first protected areas in our country — a steppe reserve created in the south of the Russian Empire at the end of the 19th century by Friedrich Eduardovich Falz-Fein. Concerned about the disappearance of certain animal species, F. E. Falz-Fein founded a “new type of zoo” in 1890 for steppe mammals and rare birds, where he immediately began experiments on the acclimatization of species brought from distant corners of the planet. Soon he turned to Pyotr Kuzmich Kozlov with a request to help with the capture of Przewalski's horses in the Mongolian steppes and their delivery to his zoo. In 1914, Askania-Nova was visited by Nicholas II. The Emperor was delighted with the structure of the reserve, he wrote: "There live various deer, goats, antelopes, wildebeest, kangaroos and ostriches all year round in the open air and also together. An amazing impression, like a picture from the Bible, as if the animals came out of Noah's Ark."

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In 1917–1919, many representatives of the Falz-Fein family were forced to leave Russia, except for Sofya Bogdanovna, the mother of the reserve’s founder. The Imperial Russian Geographical Society (IRGS), the IRGS’s Permanent Nature Conservation Commission, and the USSR Academy of Sciences stood up to defend F. E. Falz-Fein’s brainchild. The famous Central Asian explorer P. K. Kozlov assumed the post of reserve commissioner and spent a year and a half in Askania, protecting the virgin steppe and the zoo’s inhabitants. The foundation he laid allowed this pearl of the Eurasian steppes to be preserved to this day. Today, Askania-Nova continues to be a haven for many rare species of animals, birds, plants, and even surviving ancient monuments. In 1984, the reserve was included in the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere program as one of the unique ecosystems. Active work is currently underway to preserve and replenish the reserve’s animal population. In 2024, Askania-Nova received the status of a federal protected area of Russia.

In 2025, it is especially important to remember the creators and curators of the reserve — Friedrich Eduardovich Falz-Fein (105th anniversary of his death) and Pyotr Kuzmich Kozlov (90th anniversary of his death). The memory of Askania-Nova was preserved in 1960–2018 in the Principality of Liechtenstein, at the Askania-Nova villa of Baron Eduard Alexandrovich von Falz-Fein. His house told a lot about the pages of Novorossiya history. The Baron made a significant contribution to the revival of the reserve: he donated family archival materials and erected a monument to his uncle — Friedrich Falz-Fein.

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The exhibition includes rare photographs from the early 20th century, archival documents and printed publications demonstrating the first steps of nature conservation in Russia. A separate block is dedicated to the modern life of the reserve – the restoration and preservation of Askania-Nova today.

The project is being implemented with the financial support of the Russian Geographical Society and the History of the Fatherland Foundation.

The headquarters of the Russian Geographical Society, the Russian State Historical Archive, the Central State Archive of Film, Photo, and Sound Documents, and the Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve are also participating in the project.

Project Manager:

Anna Vladimirovna Maksimova – Director of Exhibition and Publishing Programs at ROSPHOTO.

Author of the idea:

Olga Veniaminovna Rachkovskaya – journalist, photographer, researcher, member of the Russian Geographical Society.

Project Team:

Shaidarova Valeria Dmitrievna — Head of the Museum-Apartment of P. K. Kozlov SPbF IHST RAS.

Vorobyova Elizaveta Vladimirovna – Head of the Exhibition and Exposition Activities Sector of ROSPHOTO.

Yushkevich Ekaterina Sergeevna – specialist in exhibition and display activities of ROSPHOTO.

Acknowledgments:

Kirill Valentinovich Chistyakov — Vice-President of the Russian Geographical Society, Director of the Institute of Earth Sciences of St. Petersburg State University, Honored Geographer of the Russian Federation, Doctor of Geographical Sciences, Professor.

Roman Vladimirovich Ryabintsev — Director of the Headquarters of the Russian Geographical Society.

Nadezhda Alekseeva Ashcheulova — Director of the St. Petersburg Branch of the S. I. Vavilov Institute of the History of Natural Science and Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg.

Dmitrii Viktorovich Meshcheryakov — Director of the Askania-Nova Biosphere Acclimatization Reserve.