House No. 14 on Yaroslaviv Val is known as the house with caryatids. In my opinion, it is the most beautiful building on this street.

This house was a rental property owned by Leonid Rodzyanko, who rented out apartments in it. In the early 20th century, many such luxurious houses were built in Kyiv. They were equipped with electric lighting, hot and cold water, steam heating, elevators from the Otis company, and popular at the time speaking tubes that allowed visitors to communicate with the residents. The basements housed laundries and ice houses for each apartment. The buildings had apartments with 5, 7, 9, and 11 rooms, high ceilings, fireplaces, and stoves. To attract tenants, the houses were decorated in the Art Nouveau style, and the house with caryatids was no exception.

The building was constructed according to the design of architect Martin Klug in just one construction season in 1910-1911. Klug, from a family of Prussian merchants, was one of the architects passionate about the Art Nouveau style. I consider this house the most beautiful of all his works. Interestingly, Klug did not have an architect's diploma; he was a technical engineer. At that time, residential buildings could be designed not only by licensed architects but also by technical engineers who, after passing an exam, received permission to construct residential buildings. However, they could not build theaters, educational, or religious institutions.

On my tours, I always say that each Art Nouveau house tells a separate story from the architect. Martin Klug told here the story of spring and the awakening of nature. The facade of the house is adorned with numerous flowers: violets, daffodils, lilacs, and sunflowers. There are roses, the symbol of eternal love and the favorite flower of Art Nouveau. The balconies are supported by branches of chestnut, without which Kyiv's spring cannot be imagined. But the main decoration of the house is two female figures with flowing hair, the caryatids.

The origin of this word is interesting. When the ancient Greeks captured the city of Cary in the Peloponnese, they killed all the men and took the women into slavery. Since then, Greek architects began to use female figures in long garments, like those of the women of Cary, to adorn buildings. These figures, who carried burdens so that descendants would remember the punishment of the inhabitants of Cary, became known as caryatids.