Yaroslavl: A City with a Thousand-Year History

24 points11 km3.5 hours

A bear on its coat of arms and a multitude of churches, the cradle of Russian theater and painting, one of the oldest Russian cities, the jewel of the Golden Ring: all of this is Yaroslavl. The city's historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Where better to take a thoughtful stroll along the embankment than here?

Route author

Susanin Team

Things to do

📜 Learn the city's history
🔍🖼️ Spot interesting details
🏛️🕰️ Compare the eras

Route points (24)

Strelka Park in Yaroslavl

Point on route “Yaroslavl: A City with a Thousand-Year History”

Point 6

Strelka Park

🌿 Public garden or park • 🗿 Sculptures

Historical Background

A bright part of the embankment is Strelka Park. It lies on the promontory where the Volga and the Kotorosl meet. There has been a promenade here since the 1970s, but for the city's 1000th anniversary in 2010 it was turned into a landscaped park. The Strelka (“Arrow Spit”) is where Yaroslavl was born, the place where the decision was made to found the city. Legend has it that Prince Yaroslav the Wise killed an attacking bear with his axe and, in memory of this, ordered a church built on the spot, with which the building of the city began. Later the axe and the bear made their way onto the city's coat of arms. In the park you can stroll among flowerbeds and landscape compositions, see the singing fountains, and enjoy views of the Volga, Damansky Island, the embankment, and the golden domes of the churches.

The Stele on the Strelka

This is a 20-meter (66-foot) column crowned with a double-headed eagle. The monument stands on a four-sided base symbolizing the Church. Around the column stand five sculptures: a prince (Yaroslav the Wise), a monk (Patriarch Tikhon), a warrior, a worker, and a woman holding a child. Behind the figures are scenes of the prince's fight with the bear, the finding of the miracle-working Tolga Icon of the Mother of God, and the Time of Troubles, when the city became the rallying point of the militia.