KEMUZ: Abandoned Houses of Super Villains

"QUANTUM SHOT" #646
Link - article by Avi Abrams

Even the ghosts inhabiting these houses are sad and miserable

We admit, there is a certain beauty in decay (see our article), but the houses shown on this page hold not only historic and architectural value - they are also fascinating in a "Despicable Me" sort-of way: they all housed at one time the most notorious villains in Earth's history.

(Stalin's "Blizhnaya Dacha" - "Near Cottage" - in Kuntsevo, Moscow)

Some of these residences are still standing, some are neatly maintained, while others are falling into disrepair - and today we have a rare opportunity to peek inside them and, perhaps, shudder:

Stalin's Summer Residence in Kuntsevo, Moscow

Often called "The Court of the Red Tsar", this is a closely guarded, fully-intact house of Joseph Stalin, in which he lived continuously after the death of his second wife (suicide, no less). It's located smack in the middle of Moscow, only ten minutes from Kremlin, perhaps connected to it by an underground railroad (more info).

This somber structure must be swarming with ghosts and unpleasant memories to such a degree... that even KGB is reluctant to visit: nobody is allowed inside. The place is still considered "top secret", "off limits" and "under wraps", some 57 years later after Stalin died there.

(bottom right image: note the couch - this is the bed on which Stalin died in 1953)

According to memoirs of Stalin's daughter, Svetlana Alliluyeva, this house was full of Stalin's comrades and party bosses night and day - mostly during the night: incredibly long meals stretched till four in the morning, and during these strange "feasts" most of the political and security issues were discussed (and surely dreaded by all involved).

Note the rich carpet there - an Iranian custom job which took 10 years to complete. According to some sources, it now costs more than a million dollars; perhaps the most expensive carpet ever made:

(images via 1, 2)

The imposing building features very high ceilings... and sits in neatly manicured forest and gardens (Stalin liked ordered, cultivated nature and often went digging vegetables himself):

Among interesting objects in this residence (see other personal possessions of Stalin in this article): crystal table set, made in the shape of the planned Palace of the Soviets skyscraper... and state-of-the-art record player and radio. The latter was a present from Winston Churchill himself, and featured automatic changing of records, up to 10 records in a set.

The empty, strangely "Spartan" bathroom is equally fascinating (all the plumbing still works):

There were almost no mirrors in the house... (vampires? living dead, anyone? Just kidding, but it's a well-known fact that Stalin disliked mirrors). Also, a strange habit: Stalin liked to live in "room capsules" - all-purpose furnished rooms where he slept, dined and worked, all in the same space. He would occupy these small enclosures willingly, and after a week or so there will move to the next, similar one... This is why his house is full of almost identical rooms with identical sets of furniture (talk about "modular" and "scaled-down" living!).

Another spooky old summer residence, bearing the name of - perhaps - the greatest villain of all:

Abandoned "Dacha" (Summer Cottage) of Lavrenti Beriya

Lavrenti Beria was the head of Soviet Secret police (NKVD, later KGB) and the most trusted hand of Stalin after the War. He is personally responsible for organizing and master-minding (under Stalin's watchful eye) the political Terror of unthinkable magnitude, when millions of Soviet citizens were sent to prisons, many shot as traitors, and the whole country plunged into medieval, inquisiton-like dread... Speaking about ghosts, this particular house should have them a-plenty, the most haunted dark residence ever - knowing how troubled and perhaps even mad, Lavrenti Berya was.

(images via)

Osama Bin Laden's Mansion

This house was the residence of Bin Laden's brother in Florida. Osama was a frequent guest there. 17+ acres, 1.5 million dollars, built in the 1920s... Photos are courtesy Nomeus, the founder of Flurbex "The Home Of Florida's Urban Explorers", exclusively for Dark Roasted Blend:

UPDATE: The house just has been sold! Wow, I wonder if we played a hand in a publicity for it ;)

Not much is known about the house itself. As for why is it abandoned: according to this source, the government flew the nephew and his family out right after 9/11 (or not). The house spent a few years on the market, but there were no takers:

(images credit: Nomeus)

Let us know if you like to see more abandoned "villain" houses - we have more material to share for the second part... certainly, shudder-inducing.

Here is something strange:

Speaking about abandoned houses with really bizarre design and unfathomable history... Anybody knows anything about this "upside down" house? Did it land in the middle of the field as a result of some crazy twister?

UPDATE: This is a college of architecture in southern India (rural Tamil Nadu) -