Southern Ukraine Exposition at Pyrohiv
Stone cottages with solar signs on the gables, adobe homes of Danube Cossacks and a cap-style limestone windmill — the steppe flatland of the museum.
Southern Ukraine at Pyrohiv: Architecture of the Steppe
In modern administrative terms, the historic-ethnographic region of ‘Southern Ukraine’ comprises the southern parts of the Odesa and Kirovohrad regions, Mykolaiv, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia, and Crimea. The land has been settled since antiquity, as its many archaeological sites attest. After the Mongol invasion of the 13th century most settlements were destroyed and the land depopulated, earning the name ‘Wild Fields’.
It was the Zaporozhian Cossacks who began to reclaim the southern lands. As late as the 1740s most of the region was an endless steppe of thick grass where herds of wild horses grazed and rivers teemed with fish. Mass settlement began in the late 18th century after the victorious wars with Turkey: fertile soils, sea ports and the railway had turned the land into the most developed region by the end of the 19th century.
The region’s hallmark is the use of natural stone and clay as the principal building materials, which shaped the distinctiveness of its folk housing. Analogues of southern Ukrainian dwellings can be found in the monuments of many archaeological cultures, going back to Trypillia. Reeds laid ‘brush-style’ in layers 40–45 centimetres thick covered the roofs.
The Southern Ukraine exposition occupies the flatland part of the museum, matching the landscape of the steppe south. It presents architectural structures of the mid-19th to early 20th centuries from the Odesa, Mykolaiv, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions: stone and adobe cottages and a limestone windmill.
Southern Ukraine Sector Map
Sector map. The numbers on the map correspond to the monument list below.
Architectural Monuments of the Sector
Each building was relocated from a village of southern Ukraine and recreates the everyday culture of the steppe.
Mid-19th C.
1. Cottage from Starokozache
An adobe dwelling of the mid-19th century, home of a Cossack of the Danube Cossack Host (1828–1868). The hipped roof is thatched with reeds; living rooms flank the entryway. The interior is notable for plant motifs: a flowering branch in a pot — the ‘tree of life’ protecting the family. In the entryway stands a mid-19th-century oak wine press.
Early 20th C.
2. Cottage from Mykhailivka
A stone (local limestone) cottage of the early 20th century. The gable bears cosmogonic solar signs: horse heads and rosettes combined with the ideogram of water. Three-part, with a ‘katrazhka’ pantry carved out of the entryway. The main room shows urban influence: painted benches, a domed chest, a carved bed and a glass-fronted cupboard.
Late 19th C.
3. Windmill from Oleksandrivka
A late-19th-century cap-style windmill: a rotating top on a fixed stone body of local limestone. Two storeys, four sails: a grain store below, millstones above linked by a spindle and vertical gear to the wheel on the shaft. The boat-shaped roof is boarded, and the sails are canvas-covered.
Visitor Tips for the Sector
Best Photo Angles
The stone cottage from Mykhailivka with solar signs on its gable is the sector’s most striking building, especially in morning light. The Oleksandrivka windmill looks fine against the open steppe.
Getting There from the Entrance
The sector occupies the flatland part of the museum, matching the southern landscape: from the main entrance, follow the signs. A tour of the three monuments takes 15–25 minutes.
Must-See Highlights
Study the solar signs on the gable of the stone cottage, find the ‘tree of life’ in the painted adobe cottage, and walk up to the windmill with its upturned-boat roof.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are the buildings of the south made of stone rather than wood?
Forest is scarce in southern Ukraine, so the principal materials were natural limestone shell rock and clay — a tradition reaching back to the Trypillia culture. Wood was reserved for roofs, doors and windmills, while reeds served as roofing.
What is depicted on the gable of the Mykhailivka cottage?
Cosmogonic solar signs: horse heads and rosettes combined with the ideogram of water — the upper part of the universe in the builders’ worldview. It is a rare specimen of sculptural facade treatment in southern Ukrainian housing.
Is a separate ticket required for this sector?
No, like all the museum’s expositions, the Southern Ukraine sector is included in the standard admission ticket.