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Title of the article: The construction of Saint Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv: 900 anniversary of Rus Baptism
Author(s): KONENKOVA A. K.
Section: Art theory and history
Year: 2015
Issue: № 4, (38)
Pages: 174-181
Index UDK: 726
Index BBK: 85.113(2)
Abstract: The construction of the Cathedral, dedicated to Saint Prince Vladimir in Kyiv in the second half of the XIX century, was conceived by the Metropolitan of Kiev and Galich Filaret (Amfiteatrov), and was implemented in connection with Emperor Nicholas I idea to establish the monument to the Baptizer of Rus in Kiev. The article tells about the history of the design, construction and all difficult circumstances of creating an architectural project. As the result of numerous changes and modifications in the construction of the Cathedral, worked out by the architects I. V. Shtrom, P. Sparro and A.V. Beretti, V. N. Nikolaev, an engineer-architect R. B. Bernhard, a peculiar type of the temple was developed. At its core it is a traditional five-domed three-nave cross-domed сhurch, typical for the Byzantine architecture of the time of St. Prince Vladimir and the Russian architecture of this period. As the result of replanning, it had an elongated shape, resembling a three-aisled Byzantine Basilica. The impression of the length of the temple from the East to the West is reinforced by two additional domes, located at the corners of the Western part on a low bell-towers, hidden in the array of the Cathedral. Seven domes of St. Vladimir's Cathedral are reminiscent of multi-domed churches, traditional for old Russian architecture. The North, South and West vestibules emphasize a crossed plan. Simplifying and adapting the initial draft of I. V. Shtrom to new conditions, architects are co-authors preserved its basic idea, which is clearly expressed in the image of the Cathedral: the stylistic unity of the culture of Byzantium and Rus ' and the continuity of further development of Russian Orthodox culture, the Orthodox culture of Byzantium.
Keywords: reconstruction of Kiev, the construction of the monument to the Saint Prince Vladimir, the creation of the project and the construction of the Cathedral, changes in the project, technical calculations for strengthening of design, especially architecture, the stylistic unity of Byzantine and ancient Russian architecture
Bibliography: 1 Aleksandrovskii I. V. Sobor sv. Vladimira v Kieve: Sooruzhenie sobora, vneshnii vid sobora, otdelka ego [The Saint Vladimir Cathedral in Kiev: Building of the Cathedral, the appearance of the Cathedral, its decoration]. Kiev, Tip. S. Kul'zhenko Publ., 1905. 137 p. 2 Beretti A. V. O stroiashchemsia sobore vo imia sv. Vladimira v Kieve [About newly built Cathedral of St. Vladimir in Kiev]. Kiev, Tip. Imperat. un-ta Sv. Vladimira Publ., 1884. 37 p. 3 Dedlov V. L. Kievskii Vladimirskii sobor. Shkol'nye vospominaniia [The Kiev Vladimir Cathedral. School memories]. Moscow, OOO «Knizhnyi Dom» Publ., 2007. 184 p. 4 Krainii K. K., Stepanova S. S. Vladimira, ravnoapostol'nogo kniazia, sobor v Kieve [The Cathedral of Vladimir, the Prince, Equal to the Apostles, in Kiev]. Pravoslavnaia entsiklopediia [The Orthodox encyclopedia]. Moscow, Tserkovno-nauchnyi tsentr «Pravoslavnaia entsiklopediia» Publ., 2004, vol. VIII, pp. 678–681. 5 Leontovich V. G. Arkhitektory, inzhenery-stroiteli i skul'ptory, rabotavshie v Kieve v period s 1855–1925 gg [Architects, engineers, builders and sculptors who worked in Kyiv in the period from 1855–1925]. Kiev, 1961. Issue 1. Available at: http://www. alyoshin.ru/Files/arhiv/leon_pre.html (Accessed 10 September 2015). 6 Petrov N. I. Iz istorii kievskogo Vladimirskogo sobora [From the history of the Kiev Vladimir Cathedral]. Kiev, Tip. Imperat. un-ta Sv. Vladimira Publ., 1898. 40 p. 7 Sobor Sv. kn. Vladimira v Kieve [St. Prince Vladimir Cathedral in Kiev]. Kiev, Izd-vo S. V. Kul'zhenko Publ., 1898. 137 p. 8 Uzhanov A. E. Pamiatnik samoi Rossii [A monument to Russia]. Dedlov V. L. Kievskii Vladimirskii sobor. Shkol'nye vospominaniia [The Kiev Vladimir Cathedral. School memories]. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 2007, pp. 5–19.
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