MANOIR ZAMFIR ARBORE RALLI

In the village of Dolna, this manor house belonged to the Ralli family, of Romanian origin, very active in Bessarabia at the beginning of the 19th century. It was famous for its relations with personalities of the time, including the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin. During his exile in Bessarabia (between 1820 and 1823), he was regularly invited to the manor house and stayed there for long periods. It was here, it is said, that Pushkin fell madly in love with the daughter of the Gypsy baron, Zemfira Țiganca, who wrote the famous Gypsy poem. The Ralli family was very progressive at the time, Zamfir Arbore-Ralli, who came from Wallachia, had voluntarily adopted Russian nationality. It was with one of his five sons, Ivan, that Pushkin became friends. Later, Ivan had at heart the idea of immortalizing the memory of his friend in Dolna. On the anniversary of Pushkin's 50th birthday in 1849, he had a new church built in the village and restored his father's house. The museum as it stands today was opened in 1946. The majority of the items in the museum were brought from St. Petersburg and Chișinău, including original documents relating to the lives of the Pushkin and Ralli families. Thanks to the interest of the premises and the State, the estate is in excellent condition, all the rooms of the house are kept intact. A pleasant park surrounds the property. The house is represented on a 10 bani stamp issued in 2011.