If you want to look at a little mysterious Minsk, I recommend finding House of Freemasons, aka House of Klyuchinsky. The three-story building is located in the Upper Town, just a few steps from Zybitskaya Street.
The building was built in the first half of the 19th century by order of a wealthy citizen Trayan Klyuchinsky. In architectural terms, we have before us an excellent example of the classicism style with a symmetrical rectangular volume. On three sides, the house is decorated with risalits, and the main facade at the level of the second floor is highlighted by a small composition with columns.
However, it was not the architecture that made this object so famous. It is believed that representatives of the Minsk Freemasons from the mysterious Red Torch lodge gathered in this house, it operated from 1816 to 1822, and after that it was banned. There is an interesting assumption that in these years the windows were blocked up near the house so that passers-by would not find out what the Masons of Minsk were doing. There is no documentary evidence that this building was the center of the Masons, there are only references in various local history literature.
After 1822, most of the rooms in this mysterious house were rented out. The owners changed, - so from the Klyuchinskys the profitable house passed to the Zimnitskys, and then to the Nedvedskys. In the post-war years, the former House of Masons continued to be used for housing, until 1989. In the mid-90s, the long-awaited reconstruction of the building began.
Since 2001, within the walls of this house is museum of theatrical and musical history. It can be visited daily from 10 to 6 pm, at Musical lane 5.
On the very border of the Upper City is located Museum-estate “House of Vankovichi”, and going a little further from it, pay attention to one of the oldest buildings in Minsk - building of the Basilian monastery.
