Architecture of Kievan Rus'

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Saint Sophia Cathedral in Veliky Novgorod (1045–1050)

The architecture of Kievan Rus' comes from the medieval state of

Novgorod. Its architecture is the earliest period of Russian and Ukrainian architecture, using the foundations of Byzantine culture but with great use of innovations and architectural features. Most remains are Russian Orthodox churches
or parts of the gates and fortifications of cities.

After the disintegration of Kievan Rus' followed by

Galicia-Volhynia and eventually had direct influence on the Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian architecture. The Old Russian architecture of churches originates from the pre-Christian Slavic zodchestvo (Russian
: зодчество - construction).

Church architecture

Before its reconstruction in the 18th century, St. Sofia in Kiev was a prime example and a model for all churches in Kievan Rus

The great churches of Kievan Rus', built after the

Eastern Orthodox churches were mainly made of wood with the simplest form of church becoming known as a cell church. Major cathedrals often featured scores of small domes, which led some art historians to take this as an indication of what the pagan Slavic temples should have looked like. The 10th-century Church of the Tithes in Kiev was the first cult building to be made of stone. The earliest Kievan churches were built and decorated with frescoes and mosaics
by Byzantine masters.

Another great example of an early church of Kievan Rus' was the thirteen-domed Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev (1037–54), built by Yaroslav the Wise. Much of its exterior has been altered with time, extending over the area and eventually acquiring 25 domes.

Saint Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod (1045–1050),[citation needed] on the other hand, expressed a new style that exerted a strong influence on Russian church architecture. Its austere thick walls, small narrow windows, and helmeted cupolas have much in common with the Romanesque architecture
of Western Europe.

Even further departure from Byzantine models is evident in succeeding cathedrals of Novgorod: St Nicholas's (1113), St Anthony's (1117–19), and St George's (1119). Along with cathedrals, of note was the architecture of monasteries of these times. The 12th–13th centuries were the period of feudal division of Kievan Rus into princedoms which were in nearly permanent feud, with multiplication of cathedrals in emerging princedoms and courts of local princes (knyazes).

Church of the Intercession on the Nerl (1165), one of the most famous Russian medieval churches.

By the end of the 12th century, the divide of the country was final and new centers of power took the Kievan style and adopted it to their traditions. In the northern principality of

Assumption Cathedral (built 1158–60, enlarged 1185–98, frescoes 1408) and St Demetrios Cathedral
(built 1194–97).

In the western splinter of Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia churches in a traditional Kievan style were built for some time, but eventually the style began to drift towards Central European Romanesque tradition.

Celebrated as these structures are, the contemporaries were even more impressed by churches of Southern Rus', particularly the

Peter Baranovsky
.

Secular architecture

There were very few examples of secular (non-religious) architecture in

Golden Gates of Vladimir
, despite much 18th-century restoration, could be regarded as an authentic monument of the pre-Mongolian period.

In Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, no secular monuments survived aside from pieces of walls and ruins of gates. The Golden Gates of Kyiv were destroyed completely over the years with only the ruins remaining. In the 20th century a museum was erected above the ruins. It is a close image of the gates of the Kievan Rus period but is not a monument of the time.

One of the best examples, the fortress of

Andrei Bogolyubsky's palace in Bogolyubovo
, dating from 1158 to 1165.

Examples

Examples in Belarus

Examples in Russia

Examples in Ukraine

See also

  • List of buildings of pre-Mongol Kievan Rus'
  • Ukrainian architecture
  • List of Russian church types
  • Old Russian ornament

References

  • Lyubimov, L.D. (1996). The Art of the Ancient Rus (Искусство Древней Руси). Moscow.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

External links