Department of History of the Biysk Museum of Local Lore V.V. Bianki is housed in a building - an architectural monument of regional significance, the former house-estate of the merchant Assanov.

The building is located in the historical part of the city, at the intersection of Lenin and III International streets. The estate was built in 1912-13. designed by the famous Tomsk architect K.K. Lygin in the Art Nouveau style. The mansion is a two-story brick building with a basement. The composition of the main western facade is very interesting, the middle part of which is highlighted by a kind of portico with a decorative balcony on two massive pylons. The estate is complemented by an elegant wooden gazebo. At the beginning of the 20th century, stables with carriage sheds and a magnificent hayloft were located next to the mansion.

Bichan and guests of the city are surprised not only by the peculiarities of the architectural style of the estate, but also by the original heating system, which consisted of a heating stove and pipes through which hot air went from the central boiler house along special passages inside the walls of the building and reached the attic. A room with vaulted ceilings - the Assanovsky glacier - has been preserved in the basement.

The historical department has the widest collections: here you can see a sarcophagus, a cauldron, weapons from Scythian burial mounds, cult items of Altai shamans; original art of ancient artistic cast iron Buddhist sculpture; collections of watches and samovars; unique samples of cold steel and firearms. The museum's library contains about 18,000 rare books.

Collections of the Neolithic are unique in their scientific value; the Bronze Age and early nomads; the Pazyryk culture of the Scythians and the ethnography of the Kumandins, the wooden lace of house carving and the art of the East. Collected the best collection of wood carvings in Siberia.