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Pyramiden

Coordinates:78°39′22″N16°19′30″E/ 78.65611°N 16.32500°E/78.65611; 16.32500
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For the Greenlandic mountain, seePyramiden (Greenland).
Pyramiden
Пирамида
Ghost town
Pyramiden in 2012
Pyramiden in 2012
Pyramiden is located in Svalbard
Pyramiden
Pyramiden
Coordinates:78°39′22″N16°19′30″E/ 78.65611°N 16.32500°E/78.65611; 16.32500
CountryNorway
TerritorySvalbard
IslandSpitsbergen
Population
(2016)
• Total6 (During summer)

Pyramiden(Norwegian:[pʏrɑˈmîːdn̩];Russian:Пирами́да,romanized:Piramída,IPA:[pʲɪrɐˈmʲidə];literally 'The Pyramid') is an abandonedSovietcoal miningsettlement on the Norwegian archipelago ofSvalbardwhich has become a tourist destination. Founded bySwedenin 1910 and sold to the Soviet Union in 1927, Pyramiden was closed in 1998 and has since remained largely abandoned with most of its infrastructure and buildings still in place, the cold climate preserving much of the infrastructure left behind.

Since 2007, there have been efforts to make it a tourist attraction; the town's hotel was renovated and reopened in 2013. In the summer, there is a population of six caretakers.[1]

History[edit]

Pyramiden was founded by Sweden in 1910[2]and sold to theSoviet Unionin 1927.[3]It lies at the foot of theBillefjordenon the island ofSpitsbergenand is named after the pyramid-shaped mountain with the same name adjacent to the town.[4]The nearest settlements areSvalbard's capital,Longyearbyen,some 50 kilometres (31 mi) to the south,Barentsburgapproximately 100 kilometres (62 mi) southwest and the small research community ofNy-Ålesund,100 kilometres (62 mi) to the west. In Soviet times, the population was mostly Ukrainian, consisting of miners from theDonbasand staff fromVolyn.[5][6]

Owned by the state-owned Russian mining companyArktikugol,which also owns the settlement ofBarentsburg,Pyramiden once had over 1,000 inhabitants. Among its amenities were a cultural centre with a theater, a library, art and music studios; a sports complex; and a cantina open 24 hours a day.[7]It also had a primary school.[8]: 200 The northernmost monument toVladimir Lenin[9]and the northernmost swimming pool were also found here.[4]

In 1996, acharter flight for Arktikugol crashedon the approach toSvalbard Airportwith the loss of 141 lives.[10]

Between 1955 and 1998, as much as nine million tonnes of coal were extracted from the mine.[11]Mining ceased on 31 March 1998 and the settlement closed that same year. The last permanent resident departed on 10 October, leaving Pyramiden as aghost town.[12]

Until 2007, the former settlement remained uninhabited and largely untouched. The buildings' interiors remained largely as they were when the settlement was abandoned.[13]In 2012, Aleksandr Romanovsky became the first person to return to live in Pyramiden. He has since been joined by five others. Romanovsky, a musician and tour guide in the settlement, has called himself the "world's most northern head-banger". Romanovsky has lived for years on his own in this abandoned town.[14][15][16]

On 27 August 2019, the world's northernmost film festival was held in Pyramiden, dedicated to the 100th anniversary ofSoviet cinema.[17]

White writing above the abandoned coal mine. It says "Peace to the world!" in Russian (Миру мир![ru]). The phrase was commonly used in Soviet state-owned projects.
Company sign
Abandoned buildings
Gym inside the Pyramiden miners' housing complex from the ship

Preservation[edit]

Pyramiden is accessible by boat orsnowmobilefromLongyearbyen,either as part of a guided tour or independently. There is also thePyramiden Heliport.There are no restrictions on visiting Pyramiden, but visitors are not allowed to enter any buildings without permission even if they are open. While most buildings are now locked, breaking into the buildings, vandalism and theft of artefacts have become a serious threat to Pyramiden as it contributes to the accelerating deterioration of the buildings.[8]: 182 [18]

Pyramiden is maintained as a tourist destination by Arctic Travel Company Grumant, a division ofArktikugol.Tours through many buildings are available upon request at the Pyramiden Hotel. The movie theatre has been restored to fully functioning, and movies may now be booked on request. An archive of over 1000Soviet filmsis preserved in the storerooms on the site.[19]

Since 2007, Arktikugol has been renovating the hotel and upgrading the infrastructure, including building a new power station with diesel generators, in order to accommodate tourists in the old settlement. Up to 30 workers have been living in the settlement year round to maintain the facilities and guide tourists visiting from Longyearbyen.[20]

As of 2013,the Pyramiden hotel has been reopened and it is possible to stay overnight in Pyramiden.[21]The hotel also houses thePyramiden Museumas well as a post office and a souvenir shop. There was a small hotel built of old shipping containers near the harbour, but this has closed since the hotel is now renovated and open for guests.[18]There are no plans to renovate and reopen the whole settlement.

References[edit]

  1. ^Pyramiden 2016 film
  2. ^Overrein, Øystein; Henriksen, Jørn; Johansen, Bjørn Fossli; Prestvold, Kristin."Pyramiden [78° 39.3' N 16° 20' E]".The Cruise Handbook for Svalbard.Norwegian Polar Institute.Retrieved30 July2020.
  3. ^Sveriges okända ockupation.Populär Historia, 14 March 2001.Retrieved 2016-10-06.
  4. ^abSokolov-Mitrich, Dimitri [Дмитрий Соколов-Митрич] (22 October 2009).Архипелаг никак[The No-Way Archipelago].Русский Репортёр [Russian Reporter](in Russian). No. 40 (119).Archivedfrom the original on 5 September 2016.
  5. ^Bespalov, Maxim [Максим Беспалов] (2017).Український Шпіцберген[Ukrainian Spitsbergen] (in Ukrainian). Kyïv: Tempora. pp. 162–169.ISBN978-617-569-316-2.
  6. ^Остров Шпицберген: место, где не рождаются и не умирают люди
  7. ^Dickey, Colin (March 2015)."The Cold Rim of the World".Longreads.Retrieved22 May2021.
  8. ^abUmbreit, Andreas (2005).Spitsbergen: Svalbard, Franz Josef, Jan Mayen(3rd ed.). Chalfont St. Peter, Bucks: Bradt Travel Guides.ISBN978-1-84162-092-3.Retrieved21 May2021.
  9. ^Ham, Anthony (20 June 2022)."The abandoned Soviet mining town in Norway's Arctic".BBC News.
  10. ^"Exploring Pyramiden & Barentsburg (Svalbard / Шпицбе́рген)"(Video).YouTube.7 December 2017.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-12-12.Retrieved22 May2021.
  11. ^"Pyramiden Coal Mine, Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Norway".Mindat.
  12. ^Nuwer, Rachel(19 May 2014)."A Soviet Ghost Town in the Arctic Circle, Pyramiden Stands Alone".Smithsonian Magazine.Retrieved27 May2014.
  13. ^Kirby, Alex (2 September 2000)."Pulling out of Pyramiden".BBC News.Retrieved22 May2021.
  14. ^Beazley, David (10 October 2016)."Pyramiden, Population 6: The Soviet ghost town frozen in time"(Video).YouTube.Retrieved22 May2021.
  15. ^Beazley, David (9 May 2016)."Pyramiden: population 6. The Soviet ghost town frozen in time high in the Arctic | Aeon Videos".Aeon.Retrieved2023-08-31.
  16. ^Beazley, David (4 October 2016)."Pyramiden: population 6".
  17. ^Новосибирец оказался на острове за полярным кругом и открыл древний кинотеатр[Novosibirsk [Novosibirsk's Stanislav Schubert] found himself on an island beyond the Arctic Circle and reopened an ancient cinema] (in Russian). NGS (Shkulev Media Holding). 26 June 2019.NGS News Report on film festival.
  18. ^abNytt liv for Pyramiden.Svalbardposten, 6 April 2013.Retrieved 2013-04-12.
  19. ^"Northernmost movie theater reopens on Spitsbergen".Arctic.ru.Retrieved13 January2021.
  20. ^Back in Pyramiden, SvalbardArchived2013-06-18 at theWayback Machine.Elin Andreassen and Hein B. Bjerck, Ruin Memories.Retrieved 2013-04-04.
  21. ^"Pyramiden".Store Norske Leksikon(in Norwegian).Retrieved13 January2021.

Further reading[edit]

  • Andreassen, E.; et al. (2010).Persistent Memories: Pyramiden, a Soviet mining town in the high Arctic.Trondheim: Tapir Academic Press.ISBN9788251924368.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pyramiden&oldid=1229053316"