Anything happens in the life of each of us. There are also mysterious cases that are simply impossible to explain from generally accepted positions. Cemetery stories stand apart, because they are directly related to the other world, in which we will all eventually find ourselves. The secrets of the graves - this is how one can characterize those stunning phenomena that individual eyewitnesses witness from time to time when they come to the cemetery. But let's look at specific cases and make sure that they deserve close attention and study.
First story
In the late autumn of 1932, Mr. Arthur Hasman arrived at his hometown Inverness, in the north of Scotland. He spent his childhood here, and close relatives were buried here. Actually, to honor the memory of the deceased, the above-mentioned gentleman came from London. Therefore, having rested a little after the trip, Hazman headed to the cemetery. He visited the grave of his father and mother, stood near the monument to his recently deceased aunt, and then headed to the grave of Uncle Roger.
It was located in the western part of the cemetery, and next to it stood a tombstone with an angel carved on it. Soon Arthur noticed a remarkable monument, but when he approached it, he did not see his uncle’s grave nearby. In the place where his remains had previously rested, there was an absolutely flat piece of land with withered autumn grass.
The newcomer looked around in confusion. He decided that he was in the wrong place. But it was simply impossible. Hazman visited the cemetery regularly once every 5 years. In past times, my uncle’s grave was located in this very place, but now for some reason it was not there.
The man went to the cemetery watchman and explained the situation to him. He took out a diagram of the cemetery and laid it out on the table. On it, Roger's grave was in the place where Arthur had been just 10 minutes earlier. That is, the visitor was not mistaken and came exactly where he needed to go. The watchman finally dispelled all doubts. He said that a couple of years ago he saw both a monument with an angel and a tombstone next to it. But when the men arrived at the place, they again stared at an absolutely flat piece of land.
The next day, the watchman finally found the missing grave. But she ended up 300 meters from her previous place. However, the tombstone was in perfect order, and the dates of Sir Roger's birth and death clearly appeared on it. The cemetery worker could not explain this phenomenon. From a community point of view, such a move did not make any sense.
Arthur called his aunt in London. She also regularly visited the deceased, and knew very well the location of all the graves. She arrived a couple of days later and was convinced for herself that someone had moved the gravestone. All this looked blasphemous, and the lady raised a scandal. Local authorities were completely at a loss and expressed their readiness to return the slab to its place.
However, the aunt decided to get to the mortal remains and check if they were intact. Maybe grave thieves dug up the grave and violated Roger's body. Diggers came and dug a deep hole, but no traces of remains were found. This shocked the relatives of the deceased. The cemetery employees were also completely at a loss.
Arthur Hazman suggested excavating the place where the tombstone was discovered. He suggested that some pranksters had moved the mortal remains to a new location. The diggers began to dig without any enthusiasm. However, at a depth of 2 meters they came across a half-rotten coffin. The lid was removed from it, and everyone saw a skeleton with the remains of decayed clothing. The aunt told her nephew that the deceased had right hand there should be a massive gold ring. The man went down to the grave and actually found this decoration on the hand of the deceased.
After this, all doubts about the authenticity of Sir Roger’s corpse disappeared, but the mysterious incident itself ended up in cemetery stories, and the secrets of the graves appeared before people in all their mystical glory. How did the coffin and the tombstone end up in a different place? However, there were no traces of reburial. The boards of the coffin, one might say, have grown into the ground. It seemed that no one had ever done excavation work in this place before.
Scottish newspapers wrote a lot about this story. The police were investigating the strange case. But not a single version was put forward. No one saw the intruders, or whether they actually existed. The coffin and tombstone were returned to their place, and the strange incident was forgotten over time.
Second story
A strange incident, which can be described as the secrets of the graves, happened in 1763 in southern Germany near the city of Ravensburg. It was witnessed by several shepherds driving a herd of cows. On the river bank they discovered a grave with a large tombstone. There was an inscription on it: “Here lie the remains of the venerable Christina Bauer.”
The shepherds drove their flock past this place every day. But there was no grave. The coast was always clear. The entire space was occupied only by grass, and bushes grew in the distance. Therefore, the people who discovered the unusual find told everything to the priest. He came to the grave and was incredibly surprised. The priest knew this grave and the woman buried in it very well. They checked the cemetery, and in the place where Christina Bauer had previously rested, they saw a completely flat and empty piece of land.
Excavations were carried out near the river and in the cemetery. The coffin with the remains, contrary to all reason, was found on the shore. But they decided not to return the grave to its old place. The priest reasoned that apparently this was the will of the higher powers. The spirit of the deceased woman moved the remains of her mortal body to a place that was apparently more convenient for him. This grave long years instilled fear in the local residents. During the First World War it was destroyed.
Third story
Cemetery stories find their way into our days. In 1993, a mysterious incident happened on the territory of the Foley Creek farm in Kansas (USA). Farmer John Barney left his house early in the morning and saw a gravestone right in the middle of the yard. The frightened farmer immediately called the police.
The grave that appeared inexplicably was carefully examined. Apparently she was very old, since the inscription on the stone was almost erased. The farmer's house was located 5 kilometers from the nearest dwelling; the gate to the yard was always locked. At night the owner of the house let the dogs out. So a stupid joke was completely ruled out.
The grave was dug up and a rotted coffin with human remains was discovered. All this had grown so deep into the ground that it seemed as if the grave had moved into the farmer’s yard along with several cubic meters of earth. We had to use an excavator to clear the yard of unwanted burial.
The remains were transported several kilometers and buried near a cemetery located in the suburbs of the nearest city. No one has been able to establish who owned the grave and where it used to be. This mysterious incident has been illuminated by many means mass media America. But most residents considered it a newspaper duck.
Conclusion
What puts representatives of civilization into a state of stupor is not at all something unusual among some tribes of Africa. Their cemetery stories are inextricably linked to the movement of graves. Tribes have a custom of dousing a fresh grave with tree sap and reciting spells. This is done so that the grave does not leave its place. The people of Haiti behave in exactly the same way. And among some peoples of Oceania, it is customary to bury two dead people in one grave at once. If the soul of one of them wants to change place, then the second soul will resist this.
The secrets of graves, their ability to move in space, arouse genuine interest among people. However, this amazing phenomenon has not yet been solved. In addition, official science is very skeptical about such facts. Therefore, serious research is not being conducted in this area.
None of the people living on earth knows what awaits us after death. The grave puts an end to a person’s earthly life, however, in some cases, even in it the deceased cannot find peace. Next you will find the most mysterious burials in a world around which there are many mystical legends.
Rosalia Lombardo (1918 - 1920, Capuchin catacombs in Italy)
At the age of 2 years, this girl died of pneumonia. The inconsolable father could not part with his daughter’s body and turned to Alfredo Salafia to embalm the child’s body. Salafiya did a tremendous job (drying the skin with a mixture of alcohol and glycerin, replacing the blood with formaldehyde and using salicylic acid to prevent the fungus from spreading throughout the body). As a result, the girl's body, located in a sealed coffin with nitrogen, looks as if she had fallen asleep.
Cages for the Dead (Victorian era)
During times Victorian era Metal cages were built over the graves. Their purpose is not exactly known. Some believe that this was how the graves were protected from destroyers, others think that this was done to ensure that the dead did not leave their graves.
Taira no Masakado (940, Japan)
This man was a samurai and during the Heian era he became the leader of one of the largest uprisings against the rule of Kyoto. The uprising was suppressed and in 940 Masakado was beheaded. According to historical chronicles, the samurai's head did not rot for three months and all this time he quickly rolled his eyes. Then the head was buried, and later the city of Tokyo was built on the burial site. Tair's grave is still preserved, as the Japanese believe that if it is disturbed, it can bring disaster to Tokyo and the whole country. Now this grave is the oldest burial place in the world, which is kept perfectly clean.
Lilly Gray (1881-1958, Salt Lake City Cemetery, USA)
The inscription on the tombstone reads "Sacrifice of the Beast 666." Lilly's husband Elmer Gray called the US government that way, which he blamed for the death of his wife.
Chase Family Crypt (Barbados)
The family crypt of this couple is one of the most mysterious places on the Caribbean islands. At the beginning of the 19th century, it was discovered on several occasions that coffins had been moved after being placed in the crypt, but it was established that no one had entered the crypt. Some coffins stood upright, others were on the steps near the entrance. In 1820, by order of the governor, the coffins were transported to another place, and the entrance to the crypt was closed forever.
Mary Shelley (1797 - 1851, St Peter's Chapel, Dorset, England)
In 1822, Mary Shelley cremated the body of her husband Percy Bysshe Shelley, who died in an accident in Italy. After cremation, the man’s intact heart was discovered among the ashes; his woman took it home to England and kept it until her death. In 1851, Mary died and was buried with her husband’s heart, which she kept in the manuscript “Adonai: Elegy of Death.”
Russian mafia (Ekaterinburg, Russia)
Monuments in full height, installed on the graves of representatives of the criminal world, many of us have seen. At some monuments you can even find video cameras protecting them from vandals.
Inez Clark (1873 - 1880, Chicago, USA)
In 1880, 7-year-old Inez died from a lightning strike. By order of her parents, a sculpture-monument in a plexiglass cube was installed on her grave. The sculpture is made in the height of a girl, depicting her sitting on a bench with a flower and an umbrella in her hands.
Kitty Jay (Devon, England)
A nondescript hill overgrown with grass, local residents called Jay's grave. IN late XVIII century, Kitty Jay committed suicide, and her grave became a cult site for ghost hunters. Since suicides could not be buried outside the cemetery, Kitty was buried at a crossroads so that her soul could not find its way to afterlife. To this day, fresh flowers constantly appear on her grave.
Elizaveta Demidova (1779 - 1818, Père Lachaise cemetery, Paris, France)
At the age of 14, Elizaveta Demidova was married to the first prince of San Donato, whom she did not love. The unfortunate woman was one of the richest women of her time, and she bequeathed her entire fortune to the person who could spend a week in her crypt without food. Until now, no one has done this, and therefore her fortune remains unclaimed.
In the Krasnodar Territory, secret burials of people who at one time had conflicts with Legislative Assembly deputy from United Russia Sergei Zirinov were found
This photo was taken in the summer of 2011 on the Anapa beach “Golden Bay”. Deputy of the Kuban Legislative Assembly Sergei Zirinov (far left) was introduced to the President of the Russian Federation (now Prime Minister) by Anapa Mayor Tatyana Evsikova (second from right)
Now the deputy is in custody, although on a different matter. In Anapa, his guards and driver were detained, searches were carried out at the Anapa crime bosses. After the arrest of deputy Zirinov, one of the leaders of the local police went on the run. The flywheel of the investigation is just getting started, but it is already clear: in Anapa, as in the Kuban village of Kushchevskaya, a business empire has been created on the shoulders of a private security company, and its king has found access to the highest echelons of power.
Funeral truth
To see the graves, we drive from the village of Varvarovka towards Novorossiysk. At the wheel is disgraced police major Alexei Dymovsky, who once recorded a sensational video message to Putin. Exactly one kilometer after Varvarovka we turn left from the highway and move along the forest belt. The ground is dug up everywhere, and almost all of the forest belt has been cut down: more than a dozen years have passed since some of the murders, and the Investigative Committee, together with the FSB, had to work hard to find the burial places.
...At the bottom of a shallow hole is a compacted piece of earth. “The bodies lay here,” the former major concludes. Nearby is a large piece of polyethylene with traces of a brownish liquid. We dig out several buttons with the inscription “Levinson”. One of them is packed in a closed plastic bag, where material evidence is usually placed. About five meters later there is a similar hole, but much smaller in size: a child could be lying in it. After Kushchevka, as a resident of Kuban, I am not surprised by anything.
It is not yet known how many bodies have been found. But two have already been identified: Vitaly Sadovnichy and his common-law wife Olga Ivankina (traces of bullet wounds were found in the skulls). According to one version, this murder may be connected with the Anapa sanatorium "Malaya Bukhta". At the beginning of the 2000s, Sadovnichy served there as chief accountant. Then the “king” of Anapa Sergei Zirinov helped Sadovnichy become the general director of the sanatorium.
Later, Sergei Zirinov allegedly wanted to remove Vitaly Sadovnichy from his director’s position, but he refused to leave. In 2002, he filed a statement with the Anapa police, where he described in detail who was threatening him and how. Soon after this, Vitaly Sadovnichy and Olga Ivankina disappeared.
The police opened a search case. There was information that the spouses allegedly had a lot of money with them, which allowed them to go abroad. Only now, 11 years later, has it become known terrible truth. However, the Malaya Bukhta sanatorium is a tiny part of the business empire that has been built in Anapa over the past decade with the help of Zirinov. Many tried to stop him...
Arrests without rules
Now law enforcement agencies are looking for graves throughout the Anapa region. The impetus for the start of a large-scale investigation was the assassination attempt on Nikolai Nesterenko, deputy ataman of the Anapa city Cossack society. On February 22, Nesterenko was wounded twice, and his driver Viktor Zhuk was killed. The deputy city ataman fought against the extraction of “Olympic” sand on the Anapa shelf, the development of dunes in the suburbs of Anapa, and the seizure of territories in the Utrish nature reserve. We should also recall the recent history of the Anapka River. The city administration leased part of the river bank to local businessman Ashot Aslanyan for the construction of a hotel. But Nesterenko did not allow the protected area to be fenced off. This was contrary to Zirinov’s interests, since Aslanyan, let’s say, knows him well.
Nesterenko heads the company “Na Krepostnoy”, which unites the Anapa Cossack Market, a security company and a number of other companies. Anapa Cossack society and the local Armenian diaspora are two economic clans that oppose each other. The Armenian group is considered more powerful, and MP Zirinov is behind it.
Soon after the attempt on Nesterenko’s life, Zirinov’s bodyguard Amar Suloev was detained. Now the investigation is checking whether the detainee was involved in the preparation of the killer and whether it was he who obtained the weapon for the assassination attempt. Both Zirinov’s driver, nicknamed Khimik, and the head of Zirinov’s security were detained. former employee special services Andrei Miroshnikov. It is unknown which of them shows the burial sites to the operatives: this person is carried around with a special forces mask placed on his head.
On April 6 and 7, searches took place in the house of Ambartsum Airiyan, nicknamed Ampar. In Anapa he is a very authoritative person. Presumably, through him, United Russia member Zirinov kept in touch with the main Russian authority, Aslan Usoyan, nicknamed Ded Khasan (shot dead in Moscow on January 16). According to some reports, Airiyan may now be hiding in the United Arab Emirates.
When the arrests began, Zirinov returned from the UAE, where he was allegedly on vacation. He was taken straight from the Krasnodar airport to the FSB pre-trial detention center. According to my information, during a search in Zirinov’s house, a laptop was seized, in which they found audio files - a wiretap telephone conversations Nesterenko. In one of the conversations, he says that it’s time to put Zirinov in his place. Soon after this conversation, an attempt is made on Nesterenko’s life.
During the investigation, it turned out that the head of the Anapa criminal investigation department, Igor Nekhaenko, at least knew about the wiretapping. Moreover, Nikolai Nesterenko was under professional surveillance. When the investigation began to closely investigate Zirinov, the head of the criminal investigation department, Nekhaenko, disappeared. “Now he is wanted, an orientation has been sent to Kuban police departments,” says Alexey Dymovsky. The information has not yet been officially confirmed. All that is known is that Nekhaenko is absent from work.
Own President
It is noteworthy that Zirinov formally has no or almost no property. In some places (for example, in the Anapa television company “Channel 39”) Boris Makarovsky is among the founders. In Anapa he is considered a reliable assistant to Zirinov. On the day of the deputy’s arrest, “masked people” conducted a large-scale search at Channel 39. Boris Makarovsky is also associated with the Anapa 3D cinema “Mir Kino”. We will remain silent about the nominal owners of dozens of restaurants, cafes, and shops, as well as about the main Anapa department store and a number of water parks. But the five-star Valentina hotel is headed by a certain Svetlana Starostina. The Golden Bay Beach Hotel is run by Andronik Khachaturyan. All of Anapa is discussing rumors that the Chairman of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, Vyacheslav Lebedev, is vacationing here in the summer. During his vacation, as locals say, the Golden Bay beach is taken under protection and closed.
However, these are just rumors, and I would not be surprised if they were spread at the instigation of Zirinov himself. But the meeting of the United Russia deputy with the former president and now prime minister Dmitry Medvedev, most likely, was fleeting and probably the only one documented, at least by a photograph that we publish. That day, Medvedev and his family flew by helicopter from Sochi to Anapa. He was met by the Kuban governor Tkachev and the former mayor of Anapa Evsikova with a full retinue. With their blessing, Zirinov was most likely brought to the president.
The power of the guard
Together with Dymovsky we go to the Anapa district of Vysoky Bereg, we find Tamanskaya Street and the house of deputy Zirinov. Not a house, but a fortress: behind a stone fence there are large square buildings with wide dark windows and narrow loopholes. At the entrance there is a stone security booth. I explain to the security guard in a black shirt: “We want to get a comment from Sergei Andreevich.” The guard is polite: “He’s not there.” An hour later I get a call from an unfamiliar number. The woman introduces herself as deputy Zirinov’s assistant and asks for a meeting in Anapa. They work quickly. Zirinov generally did everything quickly...
He started his career in the late 90s. His authoritative uncle Nikolai Ispiryan was widely known in Anapa. In 1997, my uncle and his family were shot by bandits. Five days later, his heir died in a car accident, and the “holy place” was inherited by Sergei Zirinov.
In 2002 he was elected as a deputy Legislative Assembly Krasnodar region. By 2007, he was already a member of United Russia and became a deputy again, in 2012 - again. Now he is deputy chairman of the regional Committee on Culture and Information Policy. The other day, Zirinov received another invitation to a session of the regional parliament.
All these years, Sergei Zirinov was associated with the private security company “VAN”, which “well-wishers” decipher as “All Anapa is ours.”
Anapa is a large all-Russian resort, the money and positions here are larger than in the Kuban village of Kushchevskaya. But Anapa and Kushchevka have a number common features, from which you can get an idea of Kuban life. Firstly, behind the official authorities there is a shadow master who “settles” local problems: Sergei Tsapok in Kushchevskaya and Sergei Zirinov in Anapa. At the same time, the “owner” is also part of the scientific elite, so to speak: Tsapok was a candidate of sociological sciences, and Zirinov was a candidate of economic sciences. Like Tsapok in his time, Zirinov is a deputy from United Russia. And if Tsapok was photographed at Medvedev’s inauguration, then Zirinov was photographed directly with the ex-president.
Secondly, both here and there there are enterprises that provide financial resources for the activities of the shadow government. In Kushchevskaya it was the agricultural enterprise Artex-Agro, and in Anapa there were dozens of restaurants, shops, cafes, large hotels and water parks (resort specific). Thirdly, along with law enforcement agencies There is definitely a certain private security company that merges with them and in some cases simply replaces them: “Centurion” in Kushchevka and “VAN” in Anapa. And if in the Kushchevsky police Alexander Khodych covered the Tsapkov, then the head of the criminal investigation department Igor Nekhaenko can tell a lot about the affairs of the Anapa police. When they find him.
Nowadays, this story would be the subject of magazine investigations, but during the years of my official activity, such cases were carefully classified.
Article ContentsShow
Strange affair.
They gave me the opportunity to investigate a strange chain of disappearances. For 3 months, people disappeared in the city and the number of hangings grew, and this is really bad. All the losses are like a carbon copy. Relatives are asking for help, but there is no answer. Among the missing were two loaders from different stores, a history teacher, a supplier from a bicycle factory and about five other people. People who are not related to each other in any way. While I was studying the lists of missing people, they pulled me to the colonel, and there was already panic. The son of the second secretary of the city committee has disappeared. The situation is hysterical. They added two lieutenants as my assistants and told me to speed up the search.
We went to visit the relatives of the missing. It took two days to conduct surveys, but no results. The two loaders turned out to know each other. Both regularly changed jobs, and often came to the attention of the authorities, like parasites, going by the strange nicknames Petval and Evgont. They pretended to be poets Silver Age. There was also information that they gathered in some abandoned house, where they drank and read poetry. It has not yet been possible to find out what kind of house it is.
City rumors.
At breakfast, my wife asked why I was so gloomy and thoughtful. I had to describe the situation, and in response she said something crazy:
- So you won’t solve the case. Instead of following people you know, it would be better to listen to what people say.
I clarified:
- And what are they saying?
“And they say that there is an old woman in the cemetery who lures people to an open grave, and then people disappear. I think this has something to do with your investigation.
I chuckled:
— Three operatives are investigating the hanging, and the women at the entrance opened it.
Sarcasm is sarcasm, but still, when there are no clues, you will grab onto any version. I sent lieutenants to inspect abandoned houses, and I went to the cemetery. There were two people in the house with the sign “Watchman”: a man and a woman. I showed my ID, and the man managed to introduce himself as the boss.
- What kind of boss are you? — the woman shouted at him. “Look at him, comrade policeman.” How does the earth carry him?
Speaking of land,” I interrupted. - Do you have an unearthed grave to which some old woman takes tours?..
Both stared at me. The woman died first:
“You’re in office, but you’re doing nonsense!”
I demanded a grave register. Arguing among themselves, they gave me a journal in which there were entries with dates, names and numbers of plots.
An open grave.
In today's times of widespread computerization, it is impossible to imagine such a frivolous attitude towards documents. And in 1978, people’s attitude towards papers had not yet been established. I scrolled back three months, when the disappearances began, took a dozen burials at a glance and asked those swearing:
- Lead me to these graves.
- Why take them to see them? Not in a museum! - they answered me. - Follow the numbers. Plan of the cemetery on the wall.
I checked the plan and went. All 12 graves were on the edge of the cemetery. One of them, which was listed as someone named Stakheeva, turned out to be dug up. I was glad to have the opportunity to warm up the careless cemetery workers. I drew up an act, took out a notice not to leave, and intimidated them with responsibility for their bungling, so that they would know in future how to behave. At the same time, I found out that citizen Stakheeva had no relatives and was buried at public expense. About three months ago, two drunks asked about her.
Returning to the station, I learned that my lieutenants had found the address of the abandoned house in which Stakheeva’s corpse was located. We went there and found the bodies of the missing on the second floor. The spectacle is terrible! Several boards were broken in the floor, there was no furniture, and corpses were sitting along the walls! And no other evidence except a decayed book, the cover of which was partially preserved, and the pages were scattered into dust. Who to suspect?...
Old archives helped.
No wonder my wife is a librarian! She managed to dig up in the city archives historical information. It turns out that the industrialist Stakheev was known as a warlock. In addition to the two-story wooden house, he owned a factory and lands. Those whose surnames mostly coincided with the surnames of the bodies found in that room took part in his arrest, execution and requisition. Genealogies from the archive revealed what united the missing. Both loaders turned out to be the grandchildren of the Chairman of the Committee of the Poor Petnov, although through different wives. The history teacher was the daughter of Commissar Pestkovsky, who led the execution. The supplier from the bicycle factory was the son of Reiter's commissioner, who confiscated the merchant's property. And the same information for everyone whose bodies were found in that terrible house.
“Avenges his father,” said the wife.
But I didn’t believe in any kind of afterlife, and besides, much remained unclear. Where is the old woman's corpse? Why was the grave dug up? And where is the secretary's son?
Once again I came to an open grave. Standing before her, as if before an abyss, I asked almost out loud:
- What do you want? Maybe some money?
Found it in my pocket iron ruble with Lenin's profile, threw him into the grave. The ruble was worth so much back then! But I didn’t think about it, I was as if half asleep. Suddenly... an unknown old woman appeared nearby.
-What did you do? - she exclaimed angrily. -Who did you throw into my grave? I won't set foot here anymore!
And she walked away, and I looked, enchanted, at a piece of her decayed scarf fluttering in the wind. A happy boss met me at the department and said:
- The secretary's son has been found! He left for the sea, but forgot to warn his father! Close the case!
In the era of victorious materialism, it was not customary to talk about the otherworldly. I closed the case, although after the meeting with the old woman I had already imagined full picture actions.
The old woman's revenge.
Petval and Evgont heard a noise on the second floor of an abandoned house. We got up, and there the old woman opened the floor. Alcoholics scared her to death. Then they reported the body to the police, where her identity was established. The daughter of industrialist Stakheev had no relatives and was buried at state expense. The movers thought that the grandmother was looking for her father's treasure in an abandoned house. They opened the boards and found only a rotted book. Believing that the old woman had found the jewels and was buried with them, the poets dug up the grave. Here Stakheeva rose from the state grave and plunged them into the same state of darkness in which I myself was at the grave when I threw the ruble. Awakened to vengeance beyond the grave, Stakheeva began criminal activity. Starting with the loaders and ending with the rest, she plunged the victims into a somnambulistic state, brought them to an abandoned house, where she killed them. This is how the curse from the decayed book worked, and the dug up grave served as a gathering point for the descendants of all those involved in the events of the revolutionary period. Only Lenin’s profile on the coin helped me stop the chain of ridiculous deaths and reveal the secret of the dug up grave.
(mystical story from life)
Yuri Shatura. 57 years old.
One of the most mystical personalities in Russian literature is N.V. Gogol. During his lifetime he was a secretive person and took with him many secrets. But he left behind brilliant works in which fantasy and reality, the beautiful and the repulsive, the funny and the tragic are intertwined.
Here witches fly on a broomstick, boys and ladies fall in love with each other, the imaginary auditor takes on a pompous appearance, Viy raises his leaden eyelids and runs away from And the writer unexpectedly bids us farewell, leaving us in admiration and bewilderment. Today we will talk about his last charade, left to his descendants - the secret of Gogol’s grave.
The writer's childhood
Gogol was born in the Poltava province on March 1, 1809. Before him, two dead boys had already been born in the family, so the parents prayed to St. Nicholas the Wonderworker for the birth of the third and named the first-born in his honor. Gogol was a sickly child, they fussed over him a lot and loved him more than other children.
From his mother he inherited religiosity and a penchant for premonitions. From my father - suspiciousness and love for the theater. The boy was attracted by secrets, horror stories, prophetic dreams.
At the age of 10, he and his younger brother Ivan were sent to the Poltava School. But the training did not last long. His brother died, which greatly shocked little Nikolai. He was transferred to the Nizhyn gymnasium. Among his peers, the boy was distinguished by his love of practical jokes and secrecy, for which he was called Mysterious Carlo. This is how the writer Gogol grew up. His creativity and personal life were largely determined by their first childhood impressions.
Is Gogol's artistic world the creation of a mad genius?
The writer’s works surprise with their phantasmagoric nature. Horrifying sorcerers come to life on their pages (" Terrible revenge"), witches rise at night, led by the monster Viy. But along with evil spirits, caricatures of modern society. A new auditor comes to town, they are bought by Chichikov dead Souls, shows Russian life with utmost honesty. And next to it is the absurdity of Nevsky Prospekt and the famous Nose. How were these images born in the head of the writer Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol?
Creativity researchers are still at a loss. Many theories are connected with the writer's madness. It is known that he suffered from painful conditions, during which mood swings, extreme despair, and fainting were observed. Perhaps it was disturbed thinking that prompted Gogol to write such vivid, unusual works? After all, after suffering, periods of creative inspiration followed.
However, psychiatrists who studied Gogol's work find no signs of insanity. In their opinion, the writer suffered from depression. Hopeless sadness and special sensitivity are characteristic of many brilliant individuals. This is what helps them to become more aware of the surrounding reality, to show it with unexpected sides, surprising the reader.
The writer was shy and a closed person. In addition, he had a good sense of humor and loved practical jokes. All this gave rise to many legends about him. Thus, excessive religiosity suggests that Gogol could be a member of a sect.
Even more controversial is the fact that the writer was not married. There is a legend that in the 1840s he proposed to Countess A.M. Vilyegorskaya, but was refused. There was a rumor about platonic love Nikolai Vasilyevich to the married lady A. O. Smirnova-Rosset. But these are all rumors. As well as conversations about Gogol’s homosexual tendencies, which he allegedly tried to get rid of through austerities and prayers.
The death of the writer raises many questions. Gloomy thoughts and forebodings overcame him after the end of the second volume." Dead souls"in 1852. In those days he communicated with confessor Matvey Konstantinovsky. The latter convinced Gogol to renounce his sinful literary activity and devote more time to spiritual quests.
A week before Lent, the writer subjects himself to the most severe asceticism. He hardly eats or sleeps, which negatively affects his health. That night he burns papers in the fireplace (presumably the second volume of Dead Souls). Since February 18, Gogol has not gotten out of bed and is preparing for death. On February 20, doctors decide to begin compulsory treatment. On the morning of February 21, the writer dies.
Causes of death
People still wonder how the writer Gogol died. He was only 42 years old. Despite bad feeling V Lately, no one expected such an outcome. Doctors were unable to make an accurate diagnosis. All this gave rise to many rumors. Let's look at some of them:
- Suicide. Before his death, Gogol voluntarily refused to eat and prayed instead of sleeping. He consciously prepared for death, forbade himself to be treated, and did not listen to the admonitions of his friends. Perhaps he died of his own free will? However, for a religious person who fears hell and the devil, this is not possible.
- Mental illness. Perhaps the reason for Gogol’s behavior was a clouding of his mind? Shortly before the tragic events, Ekaterina Khomyakova, the sister of the writer’s close friend, to whom he was attached, died. On February 8-9, Nikolai Vasilyevich dreamed own death. All this could have shaken his unstable psyche and led to excessively harsh asceticism, the consequences of which were terrifying.
- Incorrect treatment. Gogol could not be diagnosed for a long time, suspecting either intestinal typhus or inflammation of the stomach. Finally, a council of doctors decided that the patient had meningitis and subjected him to bloodletting, warm baths, and cold douses that were unacceptable for such a diagnosis. All this undermined the body, which was already weakened by long abstinence from food. The writer died of heart failure.
- Poisoning. According to other sources, doctors could provoke intoxication of the body by prescribing calomel to Gogol three times. This was due to the fact that various specialists were invited to the writer who did not know about other appointments. As a result, the patient died from an overdose.
Funeral
Be that as it may, the burial took place on February 24. It was public, although the writer's friends objected to this. Gogol's grave was originally located in Moscow on the territory of the St. Danilov Monastery. The coffin was brought here in their arms after the funeral service in the church of the martyr Titiana.
According to eyewitnesses, a black cat suddenly appeared at the place where Gogol’s grave is located. This caused a lot of talk. Suggestions began to spread that the writer’s soul had transmigrated into a mystical animal. After the burial, the cat disappeared without a trace.
Nikolai Vasilyevich forbade erecting a monument on his grave, so a cross was erected with a quote from the Bible: “I will laugh at my bitter word.” Its basis was granite stone brought from Crimea by K. Aksakov (“Golgotha”). In 1909, in honor of the centenary of the writer’s birth, the grave was restored. A cast iron fence was installed, as well as a sarcophagus.
Opening of Gogol's grave
In 1930, the Danilovsky Monastery was closed. In its place, it was decided to set up a reception center for juvenile delinquents. The cemetery was urgently reconstructed. In 1931, the graves of such outstanding people, like Gogol, Khomyakov, Yazykov and others, were opened and transferred to the Novodevichy cemetery.
This happened in the presence of representatives of the cultural intelligentsia. According to the memoirs of the writer V. Lidin, they arrived at the place where Gogol was buried on May 31. The work took the whole day, since the coffin was deep and inserted into the crypt through a special side hole. The remains were discovered after dusk, so no photographs were taken. The NKVD archives contain an autopsy report, which does not contain anything unusual.
However, according to rumors, this was done in order to not make a fuss. The picture that revealed itself to those present shocked everyone. A terrible rumor immediately spread across Moscow. What did the people who were present at the Danilovsky cemetery see that day?
Buried alive
In oral conversations, V. Lidin said that Gogol lay in the grave with his head turned. Moreover, the lining of the coffin was scratched from the inside. All this gave rise to terrible assumptions. What if the writer fell into a lethargic sleep and was buried alive? Perhaps, having woken up, he tried to get out of the grave?
Interest was fueled by the fact that Gogol suffered from tophephobia - the fear of being buried alive. In 1839, in Rome, he suffered severe malaria, which led to brain damage. Since then, the writer has experienced fainting spells, turning into prolonged sleep. He was very afraid that in this state he would be mistaken for dead and buried ahead of time. Therefore, I stopped sleeping in bed, preferring to doze half-sitting on the sofa or in a chair.
In his will, Gogol ordered not to bury him until obvious signs of death appeared. So is it possible that the writer’s will was not fulfilled? Is it true that Gogol turned over in his grave? Experts assure that this is impossible. As evidence, they point to the following facts:
- Gogol's death was recorded by the five best doctors of that time.
- Nikolai Ramazanov, who filmed the great namesake, knew about his fears. In his memoirs, he states: the writer, unfortunately, slept in an eternal sleep.
- The skull could have been rotated due to the displacement of the coffin lid, which often happens over time, or while being carried by hand to the burial site.
- It was impossible to see the scratches on the upholstery, which had decayed over 80 years. This is too long.
- V. Lidin's oral stories contradict his written memories. After all, according to the latter, Gogol’s body was found without a skull. In the coffin lay only a skeleton in a frock coat.
Legend of the Lost Skull
In addition to V. Lidin, the archaeologist A. Smirnov and V. Ivanov, who were present at the autopsy, also mention Gogol’s headless body. But should we believe them? After all, the historian M. Baranovskaya, who stood next to them, saw not only the skull, but also the light brown hair preserved on it. And the writer S. Solovyov did not see either the coffin or the ashes, but he found ventilation pipes in the crypt in case the deceased was resurrected and needed something to breathe.
Nevertheless, the story about the missing skull was so “in the spirit” of the author Viy that it was developed. According to legend, in 1909, during the restoration of Gogol’s grave, collector A. Bakhrushin persuaded the monks of the Danilovsky Monastery to steal the writer’s head. For a good reward, they sawed off the skull, and it took its place in theater museum new owner.
He kept it secretly, in the pathologist's bag, among the medical instruments. When he passed away in 1929, Bakhrushin took with him the secret of the whereabouts of Gogol’s skull. However, could the story of the great phantasmagorist who was Nikolai Vasilyevich end here? Of course, a sequel was invented for it, worthy of the pen of the master himself.
Ghost Train
One day, Gogol’s great-nephew, naval lieutenant Yanovsky, came to Bakhrushin. He heard about the stolen skull and, threatening with a loaded weapon, demanded that it be returned to his family. Bakhrushin gave away the relic. Yanovsky decided to bury the skull in Italy, which Gogol loved very much and considered his second home.
In 1911, ships from Rome arrived in Sevastopol. Their goal was to collect the remains of their compatriots who died during the Crimean campaign. Yanovsky persuaded the captain of one of the ships, Borgose, to take with him a casket with a skull and hand it over to the Russian ambassador in Italy. He had to bury him according to the Orthodox rite.
However, Borghose did not have time to meet with the ambassador and set off on another voyage, leaving the unusual casket in his house. The captain's younger brother, a student at the University of Rome, discovered the skull and decided to scare his friends. He had a trip to fun company through the longest tunnel of its time on the Rome Express. The young rake took the skull with him. Before the train entered the mountains, he opened the casket.
Immediately the train was enveloped in an unusual fog, and panic began among those present. Borghose Jr. and another passenger jumped off the train at full speed. The rest disappeared along with the Roman Express and Gogol's skull. The search for the train was unsuccessful, and they hastened to wall up the tunnel. But in subsequent years, the train was seen in different countries, including Poltava, the writer’s homeland, and Crimea.
Is it possible that where Gogol was buried, only his ashes are found? While the writer's spirit wanders around the world on a ghostly train, never finding peace?
Last refuge
Gogol himself wanted to rest in peace. Therefore, we will leave the legends to science fiction lovers and move to the Novodevichy cemetery, where the remains of the writer were reburied on June 1, 1931. It is known that before the next burial, admirers of Nikolai Vasilyevich’s talent stole pieces of the coat, shoes and even bones of the deceased “as souvenirs.” V. Lidin admitted that he personally took a piece of clothing and placed it in the binding of “Dead Souls” of the first edition. All this, of course, is terrible.
Along with the coffin Novodevichy Cemetery The fence and the Calvary stone, which served as the basis for the cross, were transported. They did not install the cross itself in the new place, since Soviet authority was far from religion. Where he is now is unknown. Moreover, in 1952, a bust of Gogol by N.V. Tomsky was erected on the site of the grave. This was done contrary to the will of the writer, who, as a believer, called not to honor his ashes, but to pray for his soul.
Golgotha was sent to the lapidary workshop. The widow of Mikhail Bulgakov found the stone there. Her husband considered himself a student of Gogol. In difficult moments, he often went to his monument and repeated: “Teacher, cover me with your cast-iron overcoat.” The woman decided to install a stone on Bulgakov’s grave so that Gogol would invisibly protect him even after his death.
In 2009, for the 200th anniversary of Nikolai Vasilyevich, it was decided to return his burial place to its original appearance. The monument was dismantled and transferred to the Historical Museum. A black stone with a bronze cross was again installed on Gogol’s grave at the Novodevichy cemetery. How to find this place to honor the memory of the great writer? The grave is located in the old part of the cemetery. From the central alley you should turn right and find the 12th row, section No. 2.
Gogol's grave, as well as his work, is fraught with many secrets. It is unlikely that it will be possible to solve them all, and is it necessary? The writer left a covenant with his loved ones: not to grieve for him, not to associate him with the ashes that worms gnaw, not to worry about the burial place. He wanted to immortalize himself not in a granite monument, but in his work.
