The Temple of Basil the Blessed

The Church of the Intercession on the moat was created in the middle of the XVI century by the order of Tsar Ivan the Terrible and with the blessing of Metropolitan Makarius. The cathedral is a monument of victory: most of its churches are consecrated in memory of the events of the Kazan campaign. The unique architectural masterpiece was erected under the leadership of Russian architects Postnik and Barma. Their names were discovered at the end of the XIX century in the manuscript collection of the XVII century: "...and given to him (Ivan the Terrible) two masters of the Russian Reclu (nickname) Postnik and Barm, formerly wise and convenient for such a wonderful business." The temple was built five and a half years in 1555-1561, Silhouette of the Intercession Cathedral is recognizable all over the world because of the unusual architectural composition (nine churches on a single basis) and the unique covering of the chapters. At the end of the XVI century. near the Pokrovsky Cathedral on the site of the dismantled north-eastern part of the gallery above the tomb of the Moscow fool St. Basil the Blessed appeared a church consecrated in his name. Unlike the churches of the Intercession Cathedral, where services were performed on the days of the twelfth and patronal holidays, in the church of St. Basil the Blessed, the service was daily. This was the reason for the appearance of the popular name of the Pokrovsky Cathedral - "Temple of St. Basil the Blessed." The first floor of the cathedral is the church of St. Basil the Blessed and the subclet (subchurch). Wall “icon” writing of the late XIX century. made in oil. The iconostasis of the late nineteenth century. In the church is the cancer of St. Basil the Blessed. In the subchurch, the icon of St. Basil of the Blessed End of the XVI century is exhibited in the life frame of the XIX century, the icon of the Banner of the XVIII century, the salary of the Pokrov icon with the upcoming XIX century. On the second floor there is an ensemble of nine churches, united by indoor and outdoor galleries. The chapters crowning the domes of the temple are multi-figure and multi-colored. The central church of the Intercession is crowned with a tent. Already in the XVII century, the appearance of the cathedral has changed greatly - the external bypass gallery was blocked by vaults, porches appeared above the stairs, a bell tower was built. In the XVIII-XIX centuries. the external architectural appearance of the monument and its interiors were decorated according to the aesthetics of their time. In 1918. Pokrovsky Cathedral was one of the first to be taken under state protection as a monument of national and world importance. Since May 21, 1923, it has been open to visitors as a historical and architectural museum. At the same time, before 1929, divine services were held in the church of St. Basil the Blessed. In 1928 Pokrovsky Cathedral became a branch of the State Historical Museum. In the 20s of the XX century, extensive scientific and restoration research was developed, thanks to which it became possible to restore the original appearance of the cathedral and recreate the interiors of the XVI-XVII centuries in individual churches. Since then, four global restorations have been carried out, including architectural and painting works. In the 60s of the XX century, unique restoration works were carried out: the temple-created chronicle was opened, in which the builders indicated the exact date of completion of the construction of the cathedral - July 12, 1561 (Peter Day); the iron coatings of the domes of the cathedral churches were replaced by copper ones. In the interiors of the four churches, iconostases for the XVI century were reconstructed, completely consisting of icons of the XVI-XVII century, among which there are rarities ("Trinity" of the XVI century, "Alexander Nevsky in Life" of the XVII century). In other churches preserved iconostasis XVIII-XIX centuries. Among them are two unique first half of the XVIII century from the Moscow Kremlin. In the XVII century. above the northern part of the church of St. Basil the Blessed was built the Church of Theodosia, at the end of the XVIII century it was turned into a sacristy - a repository of church values. Currently, it hosts a series of exhibitions “Save by the Monasteries of Russia”. The Pokrovsky Cathedral is federally owned. Since 1990, it has been used both as a museum (branch of the State Historical Museum) and as a temple in which the Russian Orthodox Church holds divine services: on the days of the main thrones (Pokrov and Basil the Blessed One) patriarchal or power services are held. St. Basil’s raki reads an akathist every Sunday.