This story happened on one cold winter day in 1912. The doors of the Tretyakov Gallery opened, as always, at 10:00. Visitors began to enter slowly, with a young man wrapped in a thick coat with a raised collar. Leaving his outerwear in the locker room, he remained in a dark jacket and shirt. A tired look and quick nimble eyes began to arouse suspicion among the gallery workers. The man began to examine from the canvas "Boyarynya Morozova". He stared at the canvas for an incredibly long time, while quietly whispering something under his breath. After "Boyarynya Morozova" the visitor immediately went to study the works of Repin, where the painting "Ivan the Terrible …", fenced off from careless art lovers with an elastic wire, aroused particular interest.
As the workers of the Tretyakov Gallery themselves assured, this picture possessed simply incredible magic of influence on the people who admired it. There were even cases when overly sensitive visitors lost consciousness near her or fell into hysterics from the horror that filled the creation of the most talented master. Studying the suspicious actions of the strange stranger, the guard tried not to lose sight of him, literally breathing down his neck. Having instantly jumped to the canvas, the man successfully passed the obstacle and, taking out a hefty knife, with a cry: “Why is this blood? Enough blood! - began to shred the picture. The guard immediately rushed at the distraught bully, shouting for help to his comrades from other rooms, who did not know what was happening in their gallery. Very soon the young man, who had lost his temper, was pacified, although he did not even think to resist the workers. The instrument of the crime was a garden knife, apparently, just bought in a nearby store. The administration of the Tretyakov Gallery stared in shock at the terrible cuts left on the greatest canvas by some abnormal.
The impudent person was sent to the office of the Tretyakov Gallery, and the hall in which this dramatic story took place was temporarily closed for viewing. The canvas was examined in detail for damage, which occurred mainly in the areas of the heads of the characters in the picture, had curved edges, and in some places the paint even flew off. The author of the painting, who was at that moment near St. Petersburg, was immediately notified of the tragic incident.
The captured criminal was under surveillance and seemed completely insane. He was baptized non-stop and said: "I don't want blood, that's enough …". After a short time, the head of the detective police and the prosecutor of the district court arrived at the museum. An interrogation was carried out, during which the name of the accused was finally found out - A. A. Bulakhov. After finishing the interrogation, the criminal was sent to the police station, and the head of the capital was also brought up to date.
As soon as the name of the young attacker became widely known, all the journalists from the district gathered near his home to be the first to find out the latest news regarding the incident. The scoundrel lived in Kladbischensky lane with his father, brother and sister. 65-year-old A. E. Bulakhov was once a successful furniture manufacturer, but recently he decided to retire and quietly lived in a separate house with his three children. However, this seemingly calm family was crippled by a terrible curse - all three children turned out to be mentally ill people. The first son died of mental illness. The daughter was also out of her mind, practically did not understand anything around, was dressed in all black and looked in the same direction. The last son - the one who spoiled the painting of the Tretyakov Gallery - fell ill for a long time,his father hired the most outstanding doctors for him, but it was all in vain and the disease intensified. The son did nothing, only begged for money and drank. Sometimes he demanded incomprehensible things, for example, light the lights in the house during the day and much more. On the day of the crime, the young man left the house very early, answering his father's question, answering that he had some business. The reason that pushed the young man to this disgusting act, the poor father simply could not find.poor father simply cannot find.poor father simply cannot find.
After the completion of the investigation, it was decided to take the attacker to a psychiatric hospital. At the same time, everyone around him was very worried about his life - the patient could well have committed suicide. At a meeting of doctors, it was decided that this man was mentally ill in a manic stage. The story that happened in the Tretyakov Gallery was the result of an obsessive thought - Bulakhov thereby expressed his disagreement with violence and death …