Perlov Tea House
This house belonged to rich tea merchant Sergei Perlov, who came from an old and famous merchants family. Roman Klein designed it in a high renaissance style in the years 1890-1893. After he left the family company to create his own, Sergei Perlov turned the house into his headquarters.
So as to be granted the privilege of welcoming extraordinary Chinese ambassador Li Hongzhang, invited for the coronation of Nicolas II, he undertook the renovation of the house. This time Karl Guippious was put in charge of the work in 1895. The façade was then entirely changed and decorated with Chinese architecture elements to the rapture of the Muscovites. The interior of the house also underwent many modifications and the first floor was turned into a store.
The store managed to survive Soviet times, but the floors above were turned into communal flats. In 1997m Perlov Tea House was renovated by the merchant’s descendants so as to look exactly the way it did before.
Nowadays, the Perlov Tea House store is still working.