"About 330-200 B.C. the iron age triumphed at Minusinsk, producing spiked axes, partly bronze and partly iron, and a group of large collective burial places." Greco-Roman funerary masks, like those found at Pazyryk, make up the "Minusinsk group: at Trifonova, Bateni, Beya, Kali, Znamenka, etc." "The Indo-European aristocracy with its Sarmatian connections was succeeded at Minusinsk by the Kirghiz after the third century A.D."[9]
The Russian settlement of Minyusinskoye (Минюсинское) was founded in 1739-1740[10] at the confluence of the Minusa River with the Yenisei. The TurkicMin Usa means "my brook",[11] or "thousand rivers".[12] The name transformed to Minusinskoye (Минусинское) in 1810.
By 1822, Minusinsk had emerged as a regional center of farming and transit trade and was granted town status.[10] During the 19th century, it was a node of cultural activities for a very large area. The Martyanov Natural History Museum was opened there in 1877.[10] It is still very active and publishes a quite useful annual report of its scientific findings, meetings, etc.
The town was also a place of political exile. George Kennan wrote in his very influential book Siberia and the Exile System (NY 1891) of the town and the museum being an intellectual haven for those tsarist political activists and revolutionaries who had been exiled from European Russia in the 1880s. Vladimir Lenin used to visit Minusinsk on numerous occasions when he was in exile in the nearby village of Shushenskoye between 1897 and 1900. In November 1918, during the Russian Civil War, Minusinsk peasants started a short-lived rebellion against the White Army because of extortion and high taxes. However, poor equipment and supplies led to eventual defeat in the December, and the rebels were subjected to execution, exile, prison or fines.[13]
Minusinsk marks the center of the Minusinsk Hollow, one of the most important archaeological areas north of Pazyryk. It is associated with the Afanasevo, Tashtyk, and Tagar cultures—all of them named after settlements in the vicinity of Minusinsk.
The seventh convocation of the City Council was elected on the single voting day in 2022 using a mixed majority-proportional system. The composition included 22 deputies - 11 under the majoritarian system, 11 under the proportional system with a barrier of 5%.[15]
Established in 1882 as an amateur theatrical society, the Minusinsk Drama Theater was known as the "Sovtheater" from 1920 to 1930. The theater building was constructed on the initiative of the exiled Kon F.Y. and funded mainly by the fire society. In the beginning, the theater was on the second floor and the fire department took up the first floor. The modern Minusinsk Drama Theater performs in this building until today.
Milestones in the theater performances were 'Vasilisa Melentyeva' by Alexander Ostrovsky, 'Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich' by Alexey Tolstoy, 'Death Squadron' by A. Korneichuk, 'Destiny' by Petr Proskurin, 'Is Not Listed' by Boris Vasiliev. A performance of Alexei Cherkasov's drama “Hop” won the Stanislavsky State Prize.
The main attraction of the town is The Martyanov Natural History Museum. Based in 1877, it is one of the oldest in Siberia and first museum in the Yenisei's guberniya (province).
Museum of Decembrists in Minusinsk
Memorial building of Krzhizhanovsky and Starkov
Minusink Art Gallery
Museum "Automobiles And Motor Vehicles Of The Soviet Union"
^Минусинск [Minusinsk] (in Russian). Народная энциклопедия городов и регионов России (The People's Encyclopedia of cities and regions of Russia). Retrieved August 24, 2009.
^Минусинское восстание [Minusinsk Rebellion] (in Russian). ХРОНОС. Retrieved April 12, 2014.
Законодательное собрание Красноярского края. Закон №10-4765 от 10 июня 2010 г. «О перечне административно-территориальных единиц и территориальных единиц Красноярского края», в ред. Закона №7-3007 от 16 декабря 2014 г. «Об изменении административно-территориального устройства Большеулуйского района и о внесении изменений в Закон края "О перечне административно-территориальных единиц и территориальных единиц Красноярского края"». Вступил в силу 1 июля 2010 г. Опубликован: "Ведомости высших органов государственной власти Красноярского края", №33(404), 5 июля 2010 г. (Legislative Assembly of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Law #10-4765 of June 10, 2010 On the Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Units and the Territorial Units of Krasnoyarsk Krai, as amended by the Law #7-3007 of December 16, 2014 On Changing the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Bolsheuluysky District and on Amending the Krai Law "On the Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Units and the Territorial Units of Krasnoyarsk Krai". Effective as of July 1, 2010.).
Законодательное собрание Красноярского края. Закон №13-3049 от 18 февраля 2005 г. «Об установлении границ муниципального образования город Минусинск и о наделении его статусом городского округа», в ред. Закона №5-1826 от 21 ноября 2013 г. «О внесении изменений в Законы края об установлении границ и наделении соответствующим статусом муниципальных образований Красноярского края». Вступил в силу через десять дней после официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости высших органов государственной власти Красноярского края", №9, 4 марта 2005 г. (Legislative Assembly of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Law #13-3049 of February 18, 2005 On Establishing the Borders of the Municipal Formation of the Town of Minusinsk and on Granting It Urban Okrug Status, as amended by the Law #5-1826 of November 21, 2013 On Amending the Krai Laws on Establishing the Borders and Granting an Appropriate Status to the Municipal Formations of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Effective as of the day ten days after the official publication.).
Законодательное собрание Красноярского края. Закон №13-3022 от 18 февраля 2005 г. «Об установлении границ и наделении соответствующим статусом муниципального образования Минусинский район и находящихся в его границах иных муниципальных образований», в ред. Закона №7-2410 от 18 ноября 2008 г. «О внесении изменений в Закон края «Об установлении границ и наделении соответствующим статусом муниципального образования Минусинский район и находящихся в его границах иных муниципальных образований»». Вступил в силу через десять дней после официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости высших органов государственной власти Красноярского края", №9, 4 марта 2005 г. (Legislative Assembly of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Law #13-3022 of February 18, 2005 On Establishing the Borders and Granting an Appropriate Status to the Municipal Formation of Minusinsky District and to Other Municipal Formations Within Its Borders, as amended by the Law #7-2410 of November 18, 2008 On Amending the Krai Law "On Establishing the Borders and Granting an Appropriate Status to the Municipal Formation of Minusinsky District and to Other Municipal Formations Within Its Borders". Effective as of ten days after the official publication.).