Archive · then and now

Photo memories

Kyiv in photographs — from the Chain Bridge and horse trams to Euromaidan and the city that held out in 2022. For many of them we found a modern photo taken from the same spot: drag the slider to compare.

Then and now

Drag the divider to compare the old and new photo.

  • The Motherland Monument — Today The Motherland Monument — 1984 1984Today
    National Museum of the History of Ukraine in WWII, 27 Lavrska StreetThe Motherland MonumentThe Motherland Monument, unveiled in 1981, is Kyiv’s tallest statue. Its shield then bore the Soviet coat of arms; in August 2023 it was replaced with the Ukrainian trident.Archival photo: Robert Brumter, 1984, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Milena Frohlich, 2023, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • A hydrofoil on the Dnipro — 19851985 A hydrofoil on the Dnipro — TodayToday
    The DniproA hydrofoil on the DniproA hydrofoil speeds along the Dnipro with the Pedestrian Bridge behind. Raketa and Meteor hydrofoils carried passengers from Kyiv to Kaniv, Cherkasy and beyond. The "now" photo, from April 2025, shows the same reach of the Dnipro and the Pedestrian Bridge from the embankment by Poshtova Square.Archival photo: Don S. Montgomery, DoD / National Archives), 1985, суспільне надбання · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Xsandriel, 2025, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Peremohy Square — 19851985 Peremohy Square — TodayToday
    Halytska (Peremohy) SquarePeremohy SquarePeremohy Square from above, with the 1982 "Hero City of Kyiv" obelisk, the Ukraina department store and trams on the loop. It is now called Halytska Square. The "now" photo, from June 2024, shows the obelisk still standing, with high-rises now behind it.Archival photo: Don S. Montgomery, DoD / National Archives), 1985, суспільне надбання · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Mazij, 2024, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Pepsi on TsUM — 19891989 Pepsi on TsUM — TodayToday
    TsUM, 38 KhreshchatykPepsi on TsUMBillboards for Pepsi and other brands on the TsUM department store — some of Kyiv’s first outdoor advertising of the perestroika years. The store at Khreshchatyk and Bohdana Khmelnytskoho reopened after a 2010s reconstruction. The "now" photo, from October 2024, shows the façade free of billboards, with the "ЦУМ" sign over the entrance.Archival photo: Artashot, 1989, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Olya Tsimbal, 2024, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

From the archive

  • Khreshchatyk at night, 1980s 1980s
    Khreshchatyk (odd-numbered side)Khreshchatyk at nightKhreshchatyk in the evening in the 1980s, with festive lights on the odd-numbered side of the street and wet tarmac.Archival photo: Star61, 1980-ті, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Andriivskyi Uzviz, late 1980s late 1980s
    Andriivskyi UzvizAndriivskyi UzvizAndriivskyi Uzviz in the late 1980s: an old house behind a painted fence, a street lamp and cobblestones.Archival photo: Star61, кінець 1980-х, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • The Olympic flame in Kyiv, 1980 1980
    KyivThe Olympic flame in KyivKyiv residents line the road for the 1980 Olympic torch relay, whose route from Greece to Moscow ran through Kyiv. Several Olympic football matches were played at the Republican Stadium.Archival photo: Novodar X, 1980, CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • A trolleybus train, 1986 1986
    Holosiivskyi AvenueA trolleybus trainTwo coupled Škoda 9Tr trolleybuses on route 11 on what is now Holosiivskyi Avenue. The coupling system was invented by Kyiv engineer Volodymyr Veklych; such trains ran in the city from 1966.Archival photo: Falk2, 1986, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Tram at the University stop, 1986 1986
    Near Kyiv UniversityTram at the University stopA double-ended tram at the city-centre terminus of tram route 5, Universytet: the dead-end track required cars with cabs at both ends.Archival photo: Falk2, 1986, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • After Chornobyl, 1986 1986
    Central KyivAfter Chornobyl1 May 1986, five days after the Chornobyl disaster: streets in central Kyiv are hosed down to wash away radioactive dust. The authorities did not cancel the May Day parade on Khreshchatyk that same day.Archival photo: невідомий автор, 1986, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Founding congress of Rukh, 1989 1989
    KyivFounding congress of RukhThe opening of the founding congress of the People’s Movement of Ukraine (Rukh) on 8 September 1989, when blue-and-yellow flags were still an act of defiance. Two years later Ukraine declared independence.Archival photo: невідомий автор, 1989, суспільне надбання · Wikimedia Commons

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