Lenin’s embalmed remains have been on permanent public display in Red Square in Moscow since his death in 1924, in a mausoleum known as “Lenin’s Tomb.” When he died on January 21, 1924, the outpouring of grief was such that more than 10,000 telegrams poured into the Soviet capital, beseeching the government to honor the memory of “Papa Lenin” by embalming his body for the benefit of future generations. This wish was summarily granted, and a small army of pathologists were charged with preserving his long-decrepit corpse in perpetuam, a thankless task faithfully carried out to this day.

Until the collapse of communism in 1991, the procedure and the chemical solutions developed to preserve Lenin’s body–a mixture consisting mostly of glycerol and potassium acetate–were considered top secret and classified by the Kremlin. Indeed, it’s rumored that disintegrated bits of him have been consistently replaced with artificial substances—or that what you see is a complete wax stand-in, secretly installed to replace his decrepit body. However, one glance at Lenin’s pale waxen face and bloated, blue-tinged hands should convince even the most die-hard conspiracy theorist of the authenticity of the corpse. Though he is annually “rejuvenated” by Russian undertakers, Lenin is no Sleeping Beauty. While his dedicated caretakers deserve an A for effort, the decades of preservation efforts have not yielded results that can be mistaken for the lifelike wax likenesses found at Madame Tussad’s…

Ilya Zbarsky, Lenin’s keeper from 1934 to 1952, (he inherited the task from his father) came forward in the early 1990’s to confirm that the body on display is authentic. According to Zbarsky, Lenin is faithfully moisturized and injected with preservatives on a daily basis to prevent decay. Moreover, every eighteen months he is given a special chemical bath consisting of potassium acetate, alcohol, glycerol, distilled water, and quinine (a disinfectant). The sarcophagus is kept at a constant temperature of 61 degrees and kept at a humidity of 80 – 90 percent. Twice weekly, a group of scientists inspect his body for blemishes and gently pat embalming fluid onto his face and hands, the only visible parts of his body (the rest is covered by a suit, with a blanket over his legs).
Ironically, even though Lenin’s empire has since crumbled and few in Russia still espouse his ideology, no one has yet succeeded at laying the long-deceased leader to rest. The last to try was Boris Yeltsin, the first president of the Russian Federation (1991-1999). He intended to close his tomb and inter Lenin during his time in office, but was unable to do so before his resignation on December 31, 1999. Perhaps it is fitting that even in death, the father of Soviet communism did not see even his best laid plans come to pass; he had asked to be buried next to his mother, without a commemorative monument.

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