Cathedral of the Epiphany (Moscow)

 

Bogoyavlenskiy pereulok 2, stroenie (building) 2

Tel. (495) 698 3825

Open: 8am- 8pm daily

 

Description of the Cathedral of the Epiphany

The original medieval church of the Epiphany (Собор Богоявления) was built here in 1296 by Prince Daniil. At the time of construction, it was located on the far outskirts of medieval Moscow. The present Epiphany Cathedral replaced the medieval church in 1693-96.

 

History of the Epiphany Cathedral

The huge Epiphany Cathedral has not lost its significance in modern Moscow. There is no longer a monastery as such, new buildings have appeared nearby, but it still rises among its surroundings, claiming central importance in Kitai-Gorod. Its powerful dome is clearly visible from Zamoskvorechye and can even compete with the Intercession Cathedral on Red Square.

The Epiphany Monastery is rightfully considered one of the oldest in Moscow: it was founded by the first Moscow prince Daniil Alexandrovich in 1296 - only the Danilov Monastery is older than it. At first, all the buildings of the monastery were wooden, but in 1342, with the donations of the boyar Protasius, the first stone Cathedral of the Epiphany was erected. Subsequently, all reconstructions were carried out on the basis of this building: in 1571 after the invasion of the Crimean Khan Devlet Giray, then in 1624 at the end of the Time of Troubles. Finally, in 1693-1695, the existing building was erected on the foundations of the old cathedral. Subsequently, it was updated several times, but the structure no longer changed.

Built in the style of the Naryshkin Baroque, the Epiphany Cathedral is oriented vertically: an octagon is placed on the quadrangle, which in turn is crowned with an elongated drum with an octagonal dome. The facades are lavishly decorated with white stone carvings; the large window frames with figured columns and ridges look especially magnificent. The sides of the octagon are also crowned with ridges, and the corners of the quadrangle are decorated with stylized vases. The upper half of the quadrangle is cut through from the north and south by double windows; the basement windows are smaller in size and decorated more modestly, but also with elements of the Naryshkin baroque. The refectory and the quadrangle are connected by a wide gallery, on which additional chapels later appeared. A bell tower topped with a spire was built above the western entrance. In the interior, attention is drawn to the large sculptural compositions “Coronation of the Mother of God,” “Nativity” and “Baptism.”

In the lower church, consecrated in the name of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, there was previously a vast necropolis: here were the tombs of the most noble families of Russia - the Golitsyns, Sheremetevs, Dolgorukovs, Saltykovs and many others. The cathedral was badly damaged during the fire of 1812: from the explosion that occurred in the Kremlin, iron connections in the building burst, glass and frames flew out, and the cross on the bell tower was bent in half. Over the next few years the building was refurbished.

The Epiphany Monastery was also one of the centers of education in Russia in the 17th century. In 1685, scholar-monks from Greece - the brothers Sophronius and Ioannikis Likhud - settled there. Here they founded their own school, where they taught Greek, grammar, literature, rhetoric, logic and other sciences. Two years later, in 1687, the school moved to the neighboring Zaikonospassky Monastery and was transformed into the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy - this was the first higher educational institution in Russia.

In addition to the cathedral, there were two more gate churches in the monastery: the first, in the name of the Nativity of John the Baptist, was dismantled in 1905 (despite the protests of the Moscow Archaeological Society) for the construction of an apartment building on Nikolskaya Street; and the second, the Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands, was lost in the early 1920s after the closure of the monastery.

Divine services in the cathedral ceased after the revolution, its decoration was badly damaged, and it itself was successively used as a dormitory, industrial premises and a rehearsal hall. Some tombstones from the lower church and basement were moved to the Donskoy Monastery, which then belonged to the Museum of Architecture.
During the Great Patriotic War, the cathedral was almost lost: a German bomber fell in the immediate vicinity of it, on the corner of Nikolskaya and Bogoyavlensky Lane. The buildings that stood on this site were completely destroyed, and the cathedral itself lost its head with a drum - they were demolished by a plane during the fall. After the war, the area was cleared and built up with a massive building in the Stalinist Empire style.

Since 1991, a gradual process of revival of the Epiphany Cathedral began. Monastic life was not restored, so the cathedral functions as a parish church. In 2007, a monument to the Likhud brothers was erected in front of the altar of the cathedral on Bogoyavlensky Lane.

 

Necropolis

Until the 1930s, the necropolis in the lower church housed the tombs of the Golitsyn, Sheremetev, Dolgorukov, Saltykov, Lomodanovsky, and Repnin families of the nobility. In all, there were more than 150 graves. The gravestones of Mikhail Golitsyn, Commander-in-Chiefs Grigory Yusupov and Alexander Menshikov, and Senator Alexei Golitsyn were of great artistic value. The tomb of Marshal Mikhail Golitsyn was erected in 1765 by French sculptor Jean-Antoine Oudin; in 1935 it was moved to the necropolis of the Donskoi Monastery; most 18th-century tombstones are flattened, Baroque-style wall headstones. They are decorated with ribbons, wreaths, bouquets, intricate textile draperies, and human figures. In pre-revolutionary publications, its author was considered one of France's leading masters; in the 1930s, the tomb was looted. Only the most valuable monuments for historians were moved to the Donskoi Abbey.

 

Transportation

Subway: Ploshchad Revolyutsii