August 05, 2024

Is "Putin's Architect" Back?


Is "Putin's Architect" Back?
Putin's Palace in Gelendzhik, Krasnoyarsk Krai, designed by Lanfranco Chirillo. Ekologicheskaya Bakhta po Sebernomu Kavkazu, Dmitry Shevchenko, Wikimedia Commons.

On August 1, Sberbank appointed Lanfranco Cirillo, the designer of the infamous "Putin's Palace," as vice president of its new construction unit. Cirillo abandoned Russia seemingly for good after 20 years there, but "Putin's architect" is rebuilding ties with the country again. 

Cirillo's name can't be found in his home country's architects' union and his degree is not valid in Russia. Yet the Venetian became known for building mansions and dachas for Moscow's oligarchs in the 1990s, including for Lukoil, Gazprom, and Novatek executives. In 2014, President Vladimir Putin granted the Italian architect Russian citizenship by decree, a rare honor.

Cirillo's name appeared in Russian newspapers in 2021, after Alexey Navalny uploaded the documentary "Putin's Palace. The Story of The World's Biggest Bribe" to YouTube. The 65-year-old acknowledged he designed the neoclassical dacha, but denied it was for Putin. The architect told Meduza the 100-million-ruble ($1.2 million) mansion was for the construction firm Stroygazconsulting, owned by Ziyad Manasir. In 2013, the Jordanian businessman was among the guests at Putin's daughter's wedding to businessman Kiril Shamalov.

After the Russian government expropriated land that the Italian architect had developed and a later argument over the construction of an Olympic sailing facility, Cirillo decided to leave Russia for the UAE. But "Putin's architect" is now resuming relations with Moscow. In a statement by Sberbank, the financial institution celebrated the appointment of Cirillo to its construction unit, citing his portfolio and "great sense of style."

You Might Also Like

Baikal, not Bali
  • July 10, 2024

Baikal, not Bali

The State Duma has banned Russian deputies and senators from traveling abroad without permission.
Nationalize It
  • March 14, 2024

Nationalize It

Over the past two years, 180 private companies have been taken over by the Russian state.
Sudden Death
  • February 18, 2024

Sudden Death

Alexei Navalny’s death was entirely expected, and completely unacceptable.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

The Samovar Murders
November 01, 2019

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.

93 Untranslatable Russian Words
December 01, 2008

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

Murder and the Muse
December 12, 2016

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.

A Taste of Russia
November 01, 2012

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.

Life Stories
September 01, 2009

Life Stories

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.

Faith & Humor
December 01, 2011

Faith & Humor

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.

White Magic
June 01, 2021

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955