Historical and architectural heritage of Volgograd: iconic objects of the square of fallen fighters of pre-war and war Stalingrad

Introduction. The article analyzes the history of the creation of architectural objects surrounding the main square of the city - the Square of Fallen Fighters in the pre-war period of 1928-1938. The sequence of development of the square with new buildings of the era of “industrial constructivism”, as well as the reconstruction of houses built in Tsaritsyn, is covered in detail. Methods and materials. The study is based on the objectivity principles and applies general scientific as well as specific historical methods. The authors pay attention to the facts related to solving the problems of transforming pre-war Stalingrad into a “socialist city” - the center of industry and culture in the Lower Volga region. Separate events of the first period of the assault on Stalingrad related to the defense of iconic buildings in the central part of the city, which turned into nodes of resistance of the Soviet troops in the September street battles, are considered. Buildings and structures of the pre-war period of the city’s life that represented the appearance of the urban environment of Stalingrad, including the Square of Fallen Fighters, were forever lost to posterity. The purpose of the work is to analyze the historical architectural features of the main square and the surrounding area for subsequent computer modeling of the lost historical and cultural objects of pre-war Stalingrad based on the methodology of 3D reconstruction of structures. This approach to the historical heritage, which the city lost during the years of harsh atheistic propaganda and war, is partly able to recreate for contemporaries and subsequent generations various stages of life in Volgograd, with a characteristic appearance and features that reflect the characteristics of the city’s environment. Historical and analytical material is necessaryfor compositional modeling, which will allow reconstructing architectural objects of pre-war Stalingrad for further research and use in the development of a virtual tour.