Dormition Cathedral, Moscow
Assumption Cathedral | |
---|---|
Успенский Собор | |
Russian | |
Years built | 1475–1479 |
Groundbreaking | 1326 |
The Cathedral of the Dormition (
The cathedral was originally constructed using stone in 1326 under Ivan I.[1] The cathedral was rebuilt between 1475 and 1479 at the behest of the grand prince Ivan III to a design by the Italian architect Aristotele Fioravanti.[2] From 1547 to 1896 the coronation of Russian monarchs took place here. In addition, the cathedral is the burial place for most of the Moscow Metropolitans and Patriarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church; it also serves as a part of Moscow Kremlin Museums.
History
Early history
Archaeological investigations in 1968 indicated that the site of the present cathedral was a medieval burial ground, supporting the hypothesis that a wooden church existed on the site in the 12th century. This was replaced by a limestone structure built around 1326,[3] which has been mentioned in historical records.
In the 14th century,
By the end of the 15th century the old cathedral had become dilapidated, and in 1472 the Moscow architects Kryvtsov and Myshkin began construction of a new cathedral. Two years later, in May 1474, the building was nearing completion when it collapsed due to earthquake.[4]
Present structure
Following the disaster,
The design of the new church, with its five domes (symbolic of
In 1547, the
The cathedral suffered from many disasters in its history, including fires in 1518, 1547, 1682, and 1737,[8] and looting under the armies of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth during the Time of Troubles in 1612. During the French occupation of Russia, it was looted and used as a horse stable.
It was thoroughly restored in 1894-1895 and from 1910 to 1918. On November 21, 1917, the cathedral was the setting for the installation of
The building was repaired in 1949/50, 1960 and 1978.
In 1990, the Dormition Cathedral was returned to the church for periodic religious services, shortly before the dissolution of the Soviet Union. It was restored to the Russian Orthodox Church in 1991.
Architecture
Dormition Cathedral is a tremendous six-pillared building with five apses and five domes. It was modeled after the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir, in that it made extensive use of limestone masonry on a high limestone base, and was laid out as a three
Inside, the church decoration is dominated by its
However, one of the most important icons of the Russian Orthodox Church, the
Near the south entrance to the cathedral is the Monomach Throne of Ivan IV (1551).
In the arts
The plaza in front of the cathedral is the setting for the famous Coronation Scene in Mussorgsky's opera Boris Godunov.
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Royal Procession door of the cathedral
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Northern portal
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Portion of theHoly Doorsof Uspensky Cathedral
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Inside the nave of the cathedral
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Ivan Mikhailovich Snegirev: Dormition Cathedral, Moscow (1856)
Notes
- ISBN 9780199560417.
- ISBN 9780582491533.
- ^ Moscow, Northern Europe: International Dictionary of Historic Places, Vol. 2, ed. Trudy Ring, Noelle Watson, Paul Schellinger, (Routledge, 2013), 497.
- ^ Dmitriĭ Olegovich Shvidkovskiĭ, Russian Architecture and the West, (Yale University Press, 2007), 84.
- ^ Mark M. Jarzombek, Vikramaditya Prakash and Francis D.K. Ching, A Global History of Architecture, (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2011), 544.
- ISBN 978-0-226-11664-8.
- ^ Isabel de Madariaga, Ivan the Terrible, (Yale University Press, 2005), 50.
- ^ Seeing the Sights in Eighteenth century Russia: the Moscow Kremlin, Lindsey Hughes, Eighteenth century Russia: society, culture, economy: Wittenberg 2004, ed. Roger P. Bartlett, Gabriela Lehmann-Carli, (LIT Verlag Munster, 2007), 320.
See also
- Dormition of the Theotokos
References
- Klein, Mina. The Kremlin: Citadel of History. Macmillan Publishing Company (1973). ISBN 0-02-750830-7
- Tropkin, Alexander. The Moscow Kremlin: history of Russia's unique monument. Publishing House "Russkaya Zhizn" (1980). ASIN: B0010XM7BQ