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.

  • Euro 2012 fan zone — Today Euro 2012 fan zone — 2012 2012Today
    Maidan NezalezhnostiEuro 2012 fan zoneThe UEFA Euro 2012 fan zone on Maidan Nezalezhnosti in June 2012. Ukraine co-hosted the tournament with Poland; the final was played in Kyiv at the Olimpiyskiy stadium on 1 July. In September 2021 a flower bed spelling "Я ❤ Україну" ("I love Ukraine") stood where the stage had been, with Hotel Ukraina still rising behind the Independence Monument.Archival photo: Erik Cleves Kristensen, 2012, CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Грибюк Руслан Володимирович, 2021, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • The Maidan after the assault — 20142014 The Maidan after the assault — TodayToday
    Maidan NezalezhnostiThe Maidan after the assault21 February 2014: the Maidan after the bloodshed of 18–20 February — torn-up paving, burnt tyres and the gutted Trade Unions Building. The next day Yanukovych fled Kyiv; the protesters killed are remembered as the Heavenly Hundred. The Trade Unions Building was later restored; the "now" photo was taken at the parade for the 30th anniversary of independence on 24 August 2021.Archival photo: Kiyanka, 2014, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Офіс Президента України, 2021, CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • The Trade Unions Building after the fire — Today The Trade Unions Building after the fire — 2014 2014Today
    2 Maidan NezalezhnostiThe Trade Unions Building after the fireThe Trade Unions Building in June 2014, after the fire of the night of 18–19 February, when it housed the Maidan headquarters. The building has been restored, and its rooftop clock and display are lit again.Archival photo: A1, 2014, CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Marcuspn, 2024, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • People's Friendship Arch — Today People's Friendship Arch — 2019 2019Today
    Khreshchatyi ParkPeople's Friendship ArchOctober 2019: the 1982 titanium arch with its bronze figures of two workers symbolising the "reunification" of Ukraine with Russia, and a black "crack" painted at the top. The sculpture was dismantled on 26 April 2022; on 14 May the city council renamed the monument the Arch of Freedom of the Ukrainian People, and in 2024 work began on removing the granite Pereiaslav Council group as well. The "now" photo dates from November 2025.Archival photo: Canercangul, 2019, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Venzz, 2025, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Andriivskyi Uzviz under repair — 20122012 Andriivskyi Uzviz under repair — TodayToday
    Andriivskyi UzvizAndriivskyi Uzviz under repair24 May 2012: the cobbles of Andriivskyi Uzviz torn up during the street's 2012 reconstruction, with workers relaying the stone and the spire of Richard's Castle in the distance. The "now" photo, from February 2024, shows the same street with its new paving.Archival photo: Andrew Niukin, 2012, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
    Modern photo: Щука Олександра, 2024, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

From the archive

  • Euromaidan, 1 December, 2013 2013
    Maidan NezalezhnostiEuromaidan, 1 DecemberOn 1 December 2013, the day after riot police beat students on the square, hundreds of thousands came to the Maidan. The protest against abandoning the EU association agreement grew into the Revolution of Dignity.Archival photo: Nessa Gnatoush, 2013, CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Night on Khreshchatyk, 2013 2013
    KhreshchatykNight on KhreshchatykBefore dawn on 18 December 2013: barricaded Khreshchatyk, protesters’ tents and a laser beam over the square. The Maidan camp stood all winter.Archival photo: Аимаина хикари, 2013, CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Barricade on Hrushevskoho Street, 2014 2014
    Mykhaila Hrushevskoho StreetBarricade on Hrushevskoho Street26 January 2014: a charred barricade of tyres and snow on Hrushevskoho Street by the Dynamo stadium, scene of clashes between protesters and police since 19 January.Archival photo: Sasha Maksymenko, 2014, CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Teremky station opens, 2013 2013
    Teremky metro stationTeremky station opensTeremky station on its opening day, 6 November 2013 — the southern terminus of the Obolonsko-Teremkivska line and the last Kyiv metro station opened before the full-scale war.Archival photo: Dimant, 2013, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Eurovision in Kyiv, 2017 2017
    International Exhibition Centre, 15 Brovarskyi AvenueEurovision in KyivO.Torvald perform "Time" at Eurovision 2017 in the International Exhibition Centre. Kyiv hosted the contest for the second time, after Jamala’s victory in 2016.Archival photo: Mykola Swarnyk, 2017, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  • Opening of the glass bridge, 2019 2019
    Pedestrian bridge, Khreshchatyi ParkOpening of the glass bridgeOn 25 May 2019 crowds filled the new pedestrian and cycle bridge linking Volodymyrska Hill and Khreshchatyi Park over Volodymyrskyi Uzviz, nicknamed the "glass bridge" for its glass floor panels.Archival photo: Володимир Чеппель, 2019, CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

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