30 C O N T E X T 9 7 : N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 6 Mike Clarke Conservation in the north of Russia Monks, prisoners and conservationists have faced life with winter temperatures as low as minus 40º, and freezing conditions lasting from September to May. The Solovki Islands lie in the White Sea, about 100 miles south of the Arctic Circle. A monastery was founded on the islands in 1436, with the present fortified stone structure begun after Philip Kolychov became Father-Superior in 1538. To survive in the north of Russia, the monks were early adopters of new technology: a hydro-electric station was built in 1912, and a radio station in 1915. After the 1918 revolution, the monastery was closed following a disastrous fire in 1923. It then became the first Gulag, and continued as such until 1939 when, because of its proximity to the Finnish border, the monastery/Gulag buildings became a naval base. The naval base closed in the early 1990s. By that time the site had been recognised as of great importance to Russian history. A museum had been established and a survey made of surviving buildings. Over the past 10 years, part of the monastery has reverted to its original use, and the islands have been made a world heritage site. In 2002 I was invited to visit Solovki to work on recording and interpreting some of the many small industrial sites with a group of Polish students. My main subject was the canal system, which provided water for drinking, irrigation, power and transport, and the dry dock for the repair of boats. Last year, as part of a group from the Moscow-based Institute for the History of Science and Industry, I returned to help the museum interpret the monastery water mill. The main problems were cultural. Fortunately, several of the people I was working with could speak English, as I have only just enough Russian to find my way around. Working with archive materials was difficult, as handwriting styles vary from country to country as well as over time, and the Cyrillic alphabet makes identification even more difficult. The methods of using archives also vary across Europe, and trying to discover how things worked also slowed research. In Russia, academic-style recording of structures is excellent, with accurate scale drawings and background historic research. However, they are much weaker at the interpretation of existing structures or remains. With regard to industrial sites, practical aspects of the operation of machinery are not well understood, as those involved in conservation and heritage are unlikely to have worked on the shop floor. Industrial Solovki Monastery: after serving as the first Gulag and later a naval base, the buildings have reverted to their original use.
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