Holy Resurrection Cathedral

Holy Resurrection Cathedral
Tokyo Holy Resurrection Cathedral
Nickolai Cathedral
東京復活大聖堂
Byzantine Revival architecture
Years built	1929 (current building) (1891)
Completed	1929
Administration
Archdiocese	Japanese Orthodox Archdiocese of Tokyo
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Metropolitan Seraphim (Tsujie) of All Japan and Archbishop of Tokyo.

Holy Resurrection Cathedral (復活大聖堂, fukkatsu daiseidō,

.

History

The founder of the

. Today it is hidden among the many tall buildings erected since the 1960s.

St. Nicholas toured Russia raising funds for the cathedral. The edifice was planned by Dr. Michael A. Shchurupov, designed by Josiah Conder, and constructed by Nagasato Taisuke. The cathedral was completed on March 8, 1891, construction having begun seven years earlier. Depictions of its exotic Byzantine architecture and the unique sound of its bell often appeared in literature and illustrations of the day.

The original cathedral was seriously damaged in the

, who succeeded St. Nicholas after he died in 1912. Since Russia was no longer a source of funding, Archbishop Sergius had to look for funding within Japan. A significant amount of funding was raised by numerous concerts by the cathedral choir, led by Victor A. Pokrovsky. The re-built cathedral was re-consecrated on 15 December 1929, with a shorter bell tower, a modified dome, and a less ornate interior, according to design by Okada Shinichiro.

Despite the damage caused during the 1923 earthquake, the restoration preserved important original aspects of the building, as well as the adding new aspects of cultural importance. The Agency of Cultural Affairs conducted a survey of the building, and on June 21, 1962, Nikolai-do became a Nationally Designated Important Cultural Property (国定重要文化財, Kokutei jūyō bunkazai).^[2]

Gallery

• 
  Tokyo Resurrection Cathedral, also known as Nikorai-do
• 
  Entrance to Nikorai-do (2007)
• 
  The cathedral in 1891
• 
  An artist's impression of the cathedral in 1891
• 
  The cathedral after the 1923

  Great Kanto earthquake
• 
  1/25 architectural model of Tokyo Resurrection Cathedral as it appeared in the 1890s in Edo-Tokyo Museum
• 
  Cathedral in 2013

References

External links

Media related to Tokyo Resurrection Cathedral at Wikimedia Commons

• Holy Resurrection Cathedral (Nikorai-do) Web Site, in English or Japanese

35°41′52.93″N 139°45′55.92″E / 35.6980361°N 139.7655333°E / 35.6980361; 139.7655333

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