Historians discuss when the first Fort appeared on the site of modern Irkutsk. Few archival documents have survived and one of them shows that the first settlement appeared here in 1661.
Today, Irkutsk is included in the preliminary list of UNESCO as a historic city with the preservation of the original urban planning and development. Irkutsk is a large tourist center. Tourists come here to admire the ancient buildings, temples, masterpieces of wooden architecture. The proximity to the main attraction of Eastern Siberia – lake Baikal – makes the city even more attractive.
In the middle of the XIX century gold was found in Eastern Siberia, and Irkutsk became the main gold-mining center of the region. Until the beginning of the XX century the city was the center of the Siberian merchant class. Merchant Alexander Vtorov founded retail trade throughout the region. His dynasty owned about 50 buildings in Irkutsk. One of the main attractions is the preserved house of Vtorov, made in pseudo-Russian style by an unknown architect. Preserved in the city and other mansions: Trubetskoy, Shastin, Volkonsky.
Historical monuments: churches and temples are well preserved. One of them is a beautiful Cathedral of the Epiphany, combining the traditions of Russian architecture and manufacturing of tiles, as well as the motives of the native Siberian peoples.
Znamensky convent was founded in the late XVII century, later it was rebuilt in stone. Today the monastery is active.
Preserved in Irkutsk and other architectural gems: the Cathedral of the Kazan icon of the Mother of God, the Church of the exaltation of the cross and the Church of the Saviour-the only building of the Irkutsk Kremlin, which has survived to the present day.