Symbol of perseverance: the cabinet with a rooster from Borodianka was transferred to the museum

After Borodianka in Kyiv region was liberated, a photo of a kitchen cabinet that survived on the wall of a destroyed high-rise building was spread on social networks. The glass door, all the dishes inside, the jars of spices and the souvenirs on the shelf survived. Even a ceramic rooster, a model of Vasylkiv majolica, remained standing on top. It was developed in the 1960s by Ukrainian ceramists Valerii Protoriev and Nadiia Protorieva.

The photo of a rooster with a cabinet, taken by photographer Yelyzaveta Servatynska, became a symbol of the perseverance of Ukrainians and the now common phrase “How are you? “I’m holding on.” So they decided to keep the cabinet  at the National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity.

The building in Borodianka was about to collapse, so they decided to dismantle the cabinet quickly. On April 14, it was carefully removed by the State Emergenсy Service of Ukraine with the permission of Nadiia Svatko, the owner of the apartment.

It was important to keep every detail, up to the screws that fastened the cabinet to the wall. Before the emergency service worked, the entire area, the ruins of the building and the wall were filmed with a drone to create a 3D model, and everything was filmed in order to recreate the location and environment as accurately as possible in the future.

Now the cabinet is in the funds of the National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity. With this expedition, the Heritage Rescue Headquarters and its partners are beginning work to preserve the memory of Russia’s war against Ukraine.