Talpalari Church
The Talpalari Church (
The first church on the site was built around 1640. The
In July 1827, a devastating fire completely destroyed the church. A descendant of the original founders, vornic Dimitrie Cantacuzino-Pașcanu, rebuilt the structure.[1] He and his wife Pulcheria are depicted in an oil painting, holding the church.[2] During the period, Metropolitan Veniamin Costache, himself related to the Cantacuzenes, was preoccupied by the church's well-being. By 1835, reconstruction was complete, and a liturgy was celebrated in the new building for the opening of the nearby Academia Mihăileană. Subsequently, the church would serve as a chapel for the school. The church was practically ruined by 1884, when renovations took place,[1] lasting until 1890.[2] The walls were repaired, the walls and ceilings painted in oil, the iconostasis gilt, the balcony, doors and windows redone. The bell tower was also rebuilt, and two pavilions added to the south side of the church: one at the entrance, the other near the altar, above the crypt which contains the graves of benefactors.[1]
The church is cross-shaped; the altar has a window on the eastern axis, while the nave had a semi-spherical cupola supported by four semicircular arches. The neo-Renaissance painting, done in 1886, has several large canvases, including two scenes near the entrance: Calvary and Christ Judged by Pilate. The wooden iconostasis is carved in a Baroque style; it has white columns with sculptures of gilt wood. Icons are arranged in the classical style. The exterior walls are decorated in a Constantinople Baroque on three registers of different dimensions.[1]
Under the
The church is listed as a
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Entrance
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Apse
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Crypt entrance
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Painting of ktitors Dimitrie Cantacuzino-Pașcanu and his wife, Pulcheria