Gomel. The apartment building of merchant Leiba Mayants.

The apartment building of merchant Leiba Mayants is one of those architectural objects that help shape the unique look of Gomel. It can be seen in the very center of the city on the corner of Sovetskaya and Kommunarov streets (formerly known as Rumyantsevskaya and Myasnitskaya).

The building was built in 1894 in the Art Nouveau style and continues to delight with its intricate design and bright exterior decor in white brick shades. The facades are decorated with wrought-iron balconies and stucco elements in a pseudo-Russian style. This three-storey building fully reflects the atmosphere of pre-revolutionary times and corresponds to the architectural trends of that era. The apartment building actually consists of three connected buildings designed in a single architectural style.

At the end of the 19th century, many Jews lived in Gomel, who owned shops, workshops and apartment buildings intended for rent. The apartment buildings owned by Jewish merchants have become real monuments of Belarusian pre-revolutionary architecture.

Each of the three floors of merchant Leiba Mayants' apartment building was used in different ways. The upper floor housed apartments for rent, while the ground floor housed various retail organizations, including a liquor store owned by Leiba Mayants, a pharmacy, and a notary office. The second floor was occupied by two-year pedagogical courses, which were replaced by a secondary school after 1917.

After the revolution, such buildings were nationalized. A school was located on the second floor of the house owned by Leiba Mayants. An industrial goods store has opened on the ground floor.

The building was miraculously not damaged during the Great Patriotic War. After the war, the first floor was given over to the post office, which for a long time served as the city's main post office.

The building is currently in excellent condition. Walking along Sovetskaya Street from Gomel Park, it is impossible to pass by this remarkable architectural object, which allows you to imagine what the city center of Gomel looked like at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.