CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · Places & Architecture

Lake Sterzh

lake in Tver Oblast, Russia

Architectural plans, a scale model, maps and brass measuring instruments
Places and architectureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJul 27, 2026
Entity authorityQ2624312
Source-derived summary

Lake Sterzh (Стерж) is the third largest among the Valdai Lakes in Tver Oblast of Russia. It is the first lake through which the Volga flows.

Geography

The lake's length is 12 kilometres (7.5 mi), its width is up to 1,500 metres (4,900 ft), and the average depth is 5 metres (16 ft). The surface area of the lake is 17.9 square kilometres (6.9 mi2). The lake gives its name to the Sterzh Cross. The 167 cm cross, formerly situated on the bank of the lake, has now been exhibited in the Tver History Museum for over a century.

Volga reservoir

Lake Sterzh is oriented north to south, with one bay stretching to the east. The Volga flows in the northern part of the lake. In the south, Lake Sterzh continues as Lake Vselug. Together with Lake Vselug, Lake Peno, and Lake Volgo it forms the Upper Volga Reservoir.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Lake Sterzh” as lake in Tver Oblast, Russia. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Lake, Sterzh and lake.

Editorial reviewA strong orientation record where physical form, institutional use and historical geography need to be read together. The current 149-word lead offers orientation but no explicit four-digit date, so chronology should not be assumed. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Lake, Sterzh and lake providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Lake Sterzh”, the useful work is to connect “lake in Tver Oblast, Russia” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 27, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2624312. Authority coordinates are 57.169, 32.605. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.

Critical limits

Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.

Best used for
  • Historic place names
  • Jurisdictional context
  • Routes into maps and plans
Verify next

Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Lake Sterzh”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Lake Sterzh primary sources, Lake Sterzh archive and Lake research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Lake Sterzh”?
  2. What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
  3. Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Lake Sterzh” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.