The former block of flats of A. von Meck was built in 1913 by the architect A.N. Zeligson. Yakov Shapiro lived here — a famous dentist, who treated I. Babel, M. Gorky, I. Stalin and others. Mikhail Bulgakov also had his teeth treated by Shapiro in this house.
A letter written by the writer’s widow, Elena Sergeevna, on 18th November 1955, sheds some light on Bulgakov’s relationship with Shapiro: ‘Dear my greatly esteemed Yakov Efimovich! If Mikhail Afanasevich were alive, he would, of course, have inscribed this book for you, since he felt a deep respect towards you as a person and as a master of your profession — he very much respected you! ’ Some experts on Bulgakov believe that the interior of house 6 could be considered one of the models for Kalabukhov’s house in the short novel, Heart of a Dog. Yakov Efimovich Shapiro served as inspiration for the namesake dentist in Anatoly Rybakov’s novel, Children of the Arbat.
Point on the map
This map shows where the address sits and how it is tied into the project routes.
