The monstrous circular block of flats “Bublik” was once the pride of Soviet architecture: Today it is surrounded by greenery

The giant circular block of flats nicknamed “Bublik” was supposed to be a solution to the housing crisis that the Soviet Union once faced. The crisis arose as a result of the population moving from villages to cities as part of the then policy of collectivization and also the development of industry. In order for the new city dwellers to have a place to live, the construction of prefab houses began. These structures were a novelty at the time, which were initially intended as a cheap and only temporary solution, but eventually a number of blockhouses were built as permanent structures. Although the block of flats seem monotonous at first glance, some of them were out of the ordinary – for example, a circular block of flats called “Bublik”.

At the end of the 1960s, architects Eugene Stamo and Aleksandr Markelov designed a truly remarkable building – a circular monstrous block of flats that was supposed to show the magnificence of Soviet architecture. Construction was completed in 1972. The diameter of the block of flats was 155 meters. There were 913 apartments on a total of 8 floors. The panel house had a total of 26 entrances, which proved to be a problem in practice, as people often had trouble finding the right one. On the first floor there were non-residential premises – for example, hairdressers, pharmacies or libraries. The potential of the inner block was also fully utilized, where the residents of the block of flats could go out to breathe fresh air and sit in the park or take the children out to the playground. The apartments were bright and provided nice view to the city.

The problem with “Bublik” was higher financial cost. The atypical building cost more money than standard buildings of this type. It also took a long time to build, and the engineers also had to come up with a way to evenly distribute the weight of the building, when a rather complicated system of reinforced concrete rings was used during the implementation. Another minus was that the apartments were small and poorly soundproofed. Despite all these facts, two more such apartment buildings were subsequently built in Moscow. It was a kind of showcase of the regime at that time.

Nowadays, these types of buildings are a reminder of the Soviet architecture of the time. People still live in Moscow’s “Bublik”. Construction was in recent years reconstructed. New elevators were installed here and the cores of some apartments were remodeled. Even the surroundings of the famous block of flats look different today, there is more greenery here than before. The building also serves for other purposes, it is a popular place for photography, exhibitions or film screenings. It is certainly not the only circular building in Russia, for example the circular house located on the Fontanka River, which flows through the center of St. Petersburg, is well known. It was created in the early 1820s, even before “Bublik”. The building originally served as the residence of the merchant Ustinov, who wanted to have a private yard hidden from the eyes of the neighbors and at the same time there should be a lot of light in the house. For example, relatives of the famous writer Pushkin also lived here. Today there are offices here.