The first stage of the reconstruction of the Great Physical Auditorium is finished. We know that when creating the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, its founders tried to create the most modern educational institution at the time. In particular, there was the competition for designers of KPI buildings, which was attended by eight architects. The best project was that of an academician, Petersburg architect I. Kitner.
Design and construction works were carried out under the supervision of the construction committee. One of the members of this committee was a professor of physics H. De-Metts (in 1919 - 1920 the Rector of KPI), who since autumn 1896 had worked in the committee on the creation of Kyiv Polytechnic Institute. He personally took care of the physical laboratory, within which was also the Great Physical Auditorium. Then H. De-Metts recalled with gratitude that I. Kitner had redone the project of the physical laboratory several times until it satisfied them both.
In 1903, H. De-Metts published an illustrated brochure "The Description of construction and equipment of physical laboratory at the Emperor Alexander II Kyiv Polytechnic Institute (1898-1903)", where there was an interesting description of the then Great Physical Auditorium:
"The Great Auditorium occupies a central position between the various premises of the physical laboratory ... It has several separate entrances. The form of the auditorium is almost square at horizontal cross section, namely length 9.7 x width 8,8 = 85.36 sq. fathom at a height of 6.3 fathom between the floor near the lecture table and ceiling. This huge volume includes an amphitheater with 14 rows of seats, which houses about four-five hundred students ...
Light falls abundantly on the seats from upper-ceiling windows and windows of the north side; Northern light falls on them from behind, and the upper southern falls from front, so that all the seats perfectly illuminated.
For evening classes the auditorium has good electric lighting with 200 incandescent bulbs with 16 candles each; of them 100 bulbs are evenly distributed over all four walls at 20 elegant sconces with 5 lamps each: and the remaining one hundred bulbs are inserted into a large chandelier coming down from the middle of the ceiling.
Two large movable boards, of which the area is 1.2 square fathom, are installed in the vertical plane of the main wall behind professor, centrally relating to the lecture table. After moving these boards down behind them opens a large, smooth surface on which one can project images with the help of a magic lantern, for which a particular area and the passage between the benches are left. Last is separated on rails and concrete from the rest of the amphitheater, so that its shaking would not transfer to lantern and distort the projected image with its help.
Distribution boards for electrical current produced by the central station with mechanical workshops of the Institute are mounted on both sides of the board. On one board, west, is filled with lighting, ventilation and shading appliances; on the other, eastern, equipment for lecture purposes is concentrated: DC 250 V and three-phase alternating current with neutral conductor 140 V between phase and neutral ...
The audience and its lobby are decorated simply but tastefully, led by civil engineer V. Osmaka. Wooden ceiling is beautifully decorated and painted; plastered walls are not smooth and sometimes decorated with stucco work. On the wall opposite to the spectators Galilei’s bust is on the left, Newton’s one is on the right. Volt’s, Calcani’s, Leibnitz’s busts are on the left. Faraday’s, Helmholtz’s, Gauss’s busts are on the right. The names of famous physicists are grouped high above them, on the free place: J.R.Mayer, S. The Saton, Joule, Regnault; Th. Joung, Fresnel, Kirhoff, Bansen, Ampere, Ohm, J. Maxwell, H. Hertz, Pascal, Cavendish, Coulomb, Watt. B.Yakobi, Lomonosov, E.Lents are placed on the main wall. They all are on the brackets.
The general impression, made by this audience, is very pleasant. Reading and carrying in it the demonstration is easy and convenient. Due to the mass of air and light, even after three hours of work, you do not feel fatigue. "
During the years of rapid twentieth century the Great Physical Auditorium saw not only prominent scientists, teachers and students who in the future also became prominent scientists, teachers, engineers ... The auditorium experienced the ravages of war, after which much had to be recovered from the beginning, but much was lost forever.
Last year the renovation of Great Physical Auditorium started. The main phase of construction and restoration work carried by industrial and operational combine, chief engineer of who is deputy rector of the Department of administrative work P. Kovalov is already completed.
Technical re-equipment of the Great physical auditorium is done involving research laboratory "Didactic" of FMP. The objective of the laboratory was: the replacement of the current passive D. Mendeleev table of chemical elements with an electronic reference information teacher complex and update the physical quantities. Great help in this was given: the Dean of FMP, academician of NASU V. Bariakhtar; Head of General and Theoretical Physics Department, Professor V. Loktiev; Head of General Physics and Solid State Physics Department, PhD, professor. L. Hermash; Head of Descriptive Geometry, Engineering and Computer Graphics Department, PhD, professor V. Vanin; Head of Applied Physics Department PhD, professor S. Voronov.
Reference information teacher complex and a table of physical quantities was manufactured by Scientific Production Enterprise "Topaz" (the director is a graduate of KPI of 1976 V. Shevchenko) in a professional manner, using modern technologies and materials. The design solutions are the best adapted to the interior of the historical auditorium.
It is planned to restore the busts of famous scientists, physicists and names written on the walls with embossed letters.
After the aforementioned works, the Great Physical Auditorium will appear in its original form with mandatory elements of modernity that will not worsen the interior.
I want the impress of the updated Great Physical Auditorium to be as enjoyable as a hundred years ago, to conduct lectures there so easy and convenient as H. De-Metts once did.