Описание (английский)
Ruskeala is a rural locality (a settlement) under the administrative jurisdiction of the town of republic significance of Sortavala in the Republic of Karelia, Russia.
Within the framework of municipal divisions, Ruskeala is a part of Kaalamskoye Rural Settlement in Sortavalsky Municipal District.
An international tourist route, Blue Highway (Norway-Sweden-Finland-Russia) goes through Ruskeala.Before the Winter War and Continuation War, it was the seat of Ruskeala Municipality of the Viipuri Province in Finland. Ruskeala became the main village of its own parish, independent of Kitee, in 1721.
Not far from the settlement, the Ruskeala marble quarries
are located. The deposit was discovered in 1765 and has been in
operation since 1769. The integrity of the massif of the marble was
cracked in the 20th century due to the use of dynamite. For this reason some quarries were abandoned and inundated.
Now these picturesque deep quarries and adits with limpid water serve as a popular tourist attraction.
The quarries, as well as some other marble deposits of Karelia, the Urals, and Italy, supplied various projects in St. Petersburg, including St. Isaac's Cathedral, Marble Palace, St. Michael's Castle, the interiors of the Winter Palace, New Hermitage and Kazan Cathedral, and decorations of the St. Petersburg Metro (namely the Primorskaya and Ladozhskaya stations).
The quarry site has been designed to become Ruskeala Park, a regional park. A series of small cascade waterfalls on the Tokhmayoki River is another popular tourist attraction situated near the settlement.