Sputniks and slot machines: take a tour of St Petersburg’s Udelka flea market
16 September 2020
Text:
Paula Erizanu
Flea markets give travellers an intimate glimpse into a city’s past, and the Udelka flea market in St Petersburg is no different. Documenting its treasures, the Instagram account @udelkafleamarket shows the famous Russian market as not just a shopping destination but a museum in its own right.
Second-hand markets did not exist in the USSR, when goods were in far shorter supply than cash. The collapse of the Soviet Union left many citizens in the 1990s poorer than before. During the 1990s, second-hand markets became a staple of post-Soviet life.
From models of sputnik-series satellites to band paraphernalia and slot machines, the account time-travels through Russia’s recent history.
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