Exhibition of Achievements of the National Economy USSR -- Photos 1968

This packet of 12 postcards was issued in 1968 and features photographs from the Exhibition of Achievements of the National Economy (known in the Soviet Union by the acronym VDNKh). The VDNKh was an enormous site (larger than Monaco) created to showcase the evolving accomplishments of Soviet socialism in a wide variety of fields from the space race to culture.

You can read a short and interesting piece about the history of the VDNKh on Atlas Obscura which notes:

The VDNKh featured pavilions dedicated to each of the 15 Soviet Socialist Republics, as well as every imaginable sphere of industry. Each pavilion was unique, with some emulating the traditional art and architecture of the various republics, while others drew on more pan-European aesthetics ranging from Gothic to Art Nouveau.

Also, "In Soviet times, the exhibition center hosted dozens of conferences, professional meetings, and displays of agricultural and technological advancements."

Interestingly, as the article relates, in 2014 the people of Moscow voted to restore the exhibition both to its original Soviet era name as well as its Soviet era appearances. It can be visited today as almost a partial time capsule to the USSR's greatest successes.

I am very fond of these photos as many of them are actually rather atypical of postcards of the type, focusing as they do on playgrounds, gardens and the like, and giving them an unusual feel thematically. They are not centred in a way that you might generally expect.

(Click on images to enlarge)

The Space Research Pavilion

The Sochi Demonstration Plot

The Exhibition Hall of the Soviet Culture Pavilion

The Playground of the Latvian Demonstration Plot

At the Stone Flower Fountain

The Coal Industry Pavilion

The Horse Breeding Pavilion

The Atomic Energy Pavilion

The Soviet Press Pavilion

The Farming Pavilion

The Grain Pavilion

Some of the Exhibits

See also: Ulyanovsk -- 18 Soviet Postcards of the USSR Tourist Destination and Lenin's Birthplace

See also: Sochi 1978 -- A Postcard Visit to a Soviet Resort City