The Kremlin’s Stars: 80 Years of One of Russia’s Most Iconic Symbols

Nov 02, 2017 - 05:34 pm

For more than 200 years, two-headed eagles occupied the peaks of the Kremlin’s towers. But these symbols of Imperial Russia went against the grain of the Communist Party’s values and they were taken down. Public Domain

In 1935 the eagles were taken down and replaced with red Soviet stars. Each one contained 67.9 kilograms of gold and featured the iconic hammer and sickle in the center rimmed with Ural gems. The first of the stars were made of stainless steel and red copper sheet. Public Domain

Nothing ever goes as planned: The stars’ creators did not take into account Moscow’s harsh weather and urban smog. Over time the gold and gems lost their luster, and so after only two years the stars had to be replaced. The ruby stars we know today were built in 1937. Public Domain

When making the stars, engineers had to find a way to keep them shiny red during the day and glowing at night. Without the proper materials - a layering of red and white glass and crystal - sunlight shining through the stars would make them appear black. Sergey Bobylev / TASS

For the communists, the five points of the star were a worthy substitute for the imperial eagle. The red star has two meanings: first, the five fingers of the worker’s hands; second, the five continents that were to be united under worldwide communism: Europe, Africa, North America, South America and Asia. . Vladimir Smirnov / TASS

The stars of differing sizes have only been turned off twice. Once in World War II, and next when the Kremlin was being used as a movie set. Kiselev Sergei / Moskva News Agency

When you look at the Kremlin, certain features jump out. The lofty fortress walls, bright red bricks, golden clocks and inside, like an oyster’s pearl, the white Kremlin Palace. These architectural works not only represent the center of Russian political authority, they are cultural icons each with their own story.

Quite literally towering above are five red stars, each fixed on five of the Kremlin's twenty towers.

Symbols of Russia’s capital seen by thousands every day, these stars tell three stories: Russia’s, Moscow’s and their own.