How do they keep Lenin looking so fresh? Is Lenin’s Tomb filled with liquid N2 or what?
I don’t think they do anymore. but they used to touch him up everyday. my wife is Russian and from Moscow and that’s what she said that they do. I’ve got a picture of the outside of his tomb before they stopped guarding it. it’s pretty cool, taken during the winter in the snow with two guards out front. I also got into the Kremlin for about one penny and got yelled at for walking onto the road and taking a picture. it was walking on the road that got me yelled at not the picture.
No, silly. They use Ziplockski.
Maybe somebody can comment on this…years ago I met an elderly Polish guy-he was a retired professor of History. Anyway, he told me that in 1940, as the germans closed in on Moscow, Stalin got worried that the city would fall to the german army. He was afraid that they would descrate the body of the “patron saint of communism” (Lenin). So he decided to have the body destroyed (it was cremated). What we are seeing today is a wax dummy! Needless to say, anybody who participated in this was later killed or sent to Siberia.
I have never read of anyone who ever mentioned such a story-but the ex-professor sounded believable.
Anybody care to comment?
I have heard that there was a wax dummy used as a standin when Vladamir was being spruced up.
Lots and lots of formaldehyde. There’s actually a book out (fairly recent publication, IIRC) about the man originally charged with preserving Lenin’s body, written by his son. Damn if I can remember the title now. From what I gathered according to various sources, they give him a bath every year and top him up, so to speak. I don’t think they’d put in a wax dummy; I believe it was pretty well-known that they had to take him out of his box for maintenance and the Mausoleum would be closed at that time.
Can’t comment on the cremation bit; if I’d have read that book a little more (which I didn’t 'cos I’m not really all that fascinated by it) perhaps I could. Anectodal evidence: classmate at Georgetown heard the son of the embalmer speak several years ago; fellow claimed it was the real thing.
Not that I think preserving him is a good idea. IMHO they should bury him where he wanted to be buried, next to his mother and sister in St. Petersburg. (I’ve been to both sites.)
So, comrades, to finish up…
Khruschev and his grandson are visiting the Mausoleum. “Grandpa, when you die, will you be put here with Lenin and Stalin?”
“Of course, my boy.”
At which point Lenin sits up and says, angrily, “What the hell do you think this is, a fucking dormitory?!”
Thank you, tovarischi, I’m here on a permanent basis. Don’t tip your servers or you’ll be punished under Article 193 of the Soviet Criminal Code.
I believe the book is Lenin’s Embalmers…
I asked my dad, who’s a funeral director, but he didn’t know…sigh
Stalin’s body used to be preserved the same way, but then they buried him…
Personally, as much as I hate Lenin, I wouldn’t mind seeing the grave…just to see what it looks like…
and maybe to spit on it…
LONG LIVE THE ROMANOVS! LOL