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Znamensky Cathedral description and photos - Russia - North-West: Veliky Novgorod. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photos and a map showing the nearest significant objects. Photo and descriptionAccording to an ancient legend, in 1170, when numerous Suzdal troops attacked the city of Novgorod, thanks to the icon `` The Sign of the Most Holy Theotokos '', the Novgorodians won. According to legend, during the siege of Novgorod, Archbishop Elijah prayed for several days for the salvation of the city. Then he took an icon in the Church of the Savior, and put it on the fortress wall, facing the attackers. One arrow of the attackers hit the holy face. Then the icon itself turned away its face and exuded a tear. At this moment, the Suzdal people lost their sight, and the enemy was defeated. This is true, or fiction, but the trace of that arrow has been preserved on the icon to this day. The victory was a real miracle, since the forces were unequal. In honor of the miraculous icon, the Novgorodians built the Church of the Sign. In 1688, the church was badly dilapidated, and the Cathedral of the Sign was erected in its place. The structure is typical for 17th century temples, although its architectural forms are more similar to those of Yaroslavl than to traditional Moscow ones. The cathedral is located in close proximity to the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior, and from this neighborhood its distinctive architecture is even more noticeable. The interior painting is the same original, with a pronounced secular character. On the square of the entire western wall of the temple is the image of the Last Judgment. One of the mural figures is very similar to Peter I. Besides the murals, the Cathedral also had a significant collection of ancient icons. Unfortunately, only a few of them have survived. This is the icon of the Sign of the Mother of God known to us. and Savior Emmanuel, depicting Christ as a boy, next to the archangels Michael and Gabriel. Two icons still survived, which come from the iconostasis of the Cathedral. Today, all these icons are kept in the Novgorod museums. Over the centuries, fires have occurred in the temple. He suffered especially badly during the Second World War. The Nazis set up a barracks in the temple, they broke the floors. The frescoes were heavily smoked from the smoke of the fires, the walls were riddled with shells. Each time the building was repaired. There were wealthy philanthropists who allocated money for the reconstruction and restoration of the Cathedral. In the 1950s, the Novgorod restoration workshop was engaged in the restoration of the temple. They made a new roof for the cathedral and restored the destroyed parts. However, as a result of all these repairs, the temple has somewhat lost its original appearance. In the present, the Znamensky Cathedral is not active, but it is open, and you can visit it as a monument of ancient architecture and amazing monumental painting. However, due to the excellent acoustics of the Cathedral, sacred and classical music is often played in it. Music complements and, as it were, reveals the monumental architectural and artistic ensemble, the extraordinary beauty of the ancient artistic concept. We also recommend reading City of Arts and Sciences (Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias) description and photos - Spain: Valencia (city) Topic: Znamensky Cathedral description and photos - Russia - North-West: Veliky Novgorod. |