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The Patriarchal Chambers and the Church of the Twelve Apostles is a complex of buildings on the territory of the Moscow Kremlin, located to the north of the Assumption Cathedral and the Ivan the Great Bell Tower. Built in 1635-1656 by Russian craftsmen Antip Konstantinov and Bazhen Ogurtsov by order of Patriarch Nikon. The five-domed Cathedral of the Twelve Apostles was built on the site of the old temple and part of the courtyard of Boris Godunov.
Moscow metropolitans, and then patriarchs, lived in
the territory north of the Assumption Cathedral, starting with the first
Metropolitan Peter who settled in Moscow (early 14th century). During
their long history, the buildings of the metropolitan and then the
patriarchal court underwent many changes: the buildings were rebuilt,
destroyed and rebuilt.
The first stone chamber on the territory
of the estate was built in 1450, under Metropolitan Jonah, at the same
time the Church of the Deposition of the Robe was erected nearby, which
became the home church of the Moscow metropolitans. After the Moscow
fire of 1473, the courtyard burned out, and in 1484-1485 (already under
Metropolitan Gerontius) the church and chambers were rebuilt. However,
after the fire of 1493, the courtyard had to be restored again. In
1566-1568, on the eastern side of the mansions, the Church of the
Solovetsky Wonderworkers was added, in the basement of which a front
passage to the courtyard of the estate was arranged. With the
establishment of the Moscow Patriarchate in 1589, the metropolitan court
became patriarchal. Under the first Moscow Patriarch Job in 1597, the
complex was renovated: the chambers were thoroughly rebuilt, while
maintaining the composition of housing traditional for Rus' (two
"housing" on the sides of the canopy). At the same time, another church
was erected from the northern part of the courtyard - the Three Saints
of Moscow Peter, Alexy and Jonah. It was connected with the chambers by
a passage with a passage in the basement. Thus, the compound included
three house churches (together with the churches of the Deposition of
the Robe and the Solovetsky miracle workers).
During the Time of
Troubles, the Patriarchal Court was devastated, and then burned down
during the Moscow fire of 1626. By the end of 1626, at the expense of
Patriarch Filaret, the court was restored to its former forms. In
1643-1646 (under Patriarch Joseph), the chambers were overhauled under
the supervision of the builder of the Terem Palace, Antip Konstantinov;
the construction was carried out first by the apprentice Davyd
Okhlebinin, then by the Yaroslavl master Taras Timofeev "with comrades".
In 1652-1656, under Nikon, the old buildings, including the Church
of the Solovetsky Wonderworkers, were dismantled, and new three-story
chambers and a house church were built in their place, which in 1656 was
consecrated in the name of the Apostle Philip and Metropolitan Philip.
The roofs and crosses of the temple were covered with copper sheets and
gilded (gilded onion domes were preserved until the middle of the 19th
century). The Cross Chamber was rebuilt, its area reached 280 m².
In terms of size and luxury of decoration, the Patriarch's Chambers
were not inferior to the royal Terem Palace. The richest patriarchal
sacristy was located here. The interior of the Cross Chamber amazed
contemporaries. Despite its impressive area, it did not have a central
support (the room was covered with a closed vault on the formwork),
which was an innovation in architecture. Soon, during Nikon's trial, the
Patriarch's Chambers were cited as an example of his pride.
The
chambers were rebuilt even after Nikon. So, by 1673, one of the passage
arches under the church of the Apostle Philip was laid, and in 1680-1681
(under Patriarch Joachim) it was rebuilt and consecrated in honor of the
Twelve Apostles. Here the patriarchs performed services, except for the
great holidays, when services were held in the Assumption Cathedral. In
1691 (under Patriarch Adrian), a new floor was built over the chambers,
from which the so-called Peter's tent has survived to this day
(according to legend, in 1682, Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna hid from
rebellious archers in it with the young Peter, but this is an
anachronism) .
After the abolition of the patriarchate in 1721, the
Moscow Synodal Office was located in the chambers. Under the leadership
of the architect Ivan Zarudny, the Church of the Twelve Apostles was
divided into two floors, and the patriarchal library was placed on the
top.
In 1722-1724 the windows of the Cross Chamber were redone.
In 1748, it was examined by the architect Dmitry Ukhtomsky, who
testified to the presence of cracks in the walls and vaults. At his
suggestion, they were dug through and filled with rubble and alabaster.
At the same time, a new picturesque stove was made.
In the 1760s,
the Church of the Three Hierarchs collapsed, on the porch of which the
rite of chrismation has been performed since ancient times. The oven for
the preparation of peace was moved to the Cross Chamber (which was
renamed the Peace Chamber), where the ceremony was performed until 1917.
In the early 1780s, new cracks were discovered in the arches of the
Peace Chamber, formed from the upper tents. In 1782, the tents were
dismantled, and roof cracks and other damages were repaired by the
architect Ivan Yakovlev.
In 1790, it was planned to dismantle and
rebuild the old vault over the Peace Chamber, both outer walls to the
lower floor and voids for stairs in the corners of the lower floor. The
work was completed by 1794. At the same time, the dimensions of the
chamber and the number of windows were preserved. It is believed that
the vault also retained its shape.
During the fighting in November 1917, the Church of
the Twelve Apostles and the wall of the Refectory were hit by shelling.
In 1918 the building was nationalized, then the Patriarch's Chambers
were transferred to the museum. During the years of Soviet power, repair
and restoration work was carried out, in 1929 the iconostasis of the
17th century was transferred to the temple from the destroyed cathedral
of the Ascension Monastery. During the restoration, two passages were
opened, located under the church. For a long time, various services of
the Kremlin were located in the building.
As a museum, the
Patriarch's Chambers were first opened in 1961. The first permanent
exhibition opened in 1967, the modern exhibition has been operating
since May 1987.
In the early 1990s, the cathedral was transferred to the Russian Orthodox Church. Divine services began to be held once a year on the patronal feast, the rest of the time a museum operates in the temple.
At present, the Patriarch's Chambers are a
two-three-story building (in one place, the remains of the fourth floor,
the Petrovsky tent, have been preserved), with a front facade facing
south, onto Cathedral Square. The structure of the building includes the
five-domed Church of the Twelve Apostles with double-height windows.
Under the church there are two passage arches. A gallery on pillars is
attached to the northern facade.
Household services and
patriarchal orders were located on the first floor of the building, on
the second - the chambers: the front Cross, the Dining Room, the orders,
the front vestibule, the refectory, the Church of the Twelve Apostles.
On the third floor were the private chambers of the patriarch and the
home church of the Apostle Philip.
The architectural decor of the
building includes pilasters at the passage arches, keel-shaped pediments
of the windows on the first floor, arcade belt of the second and third
floors. The second floor is separated from the first one by a strongly
protruding cornice, which is typical for Moscow architecture of the 17th
century. The white-stone portal of the church at the level of the second
floor testifies to the bypass gallery that once existed around the
building. The decorations of the building often repeat the design
details of the neighboring buildings of the Cathedral Square.
The
apses of the church face the east side.
The northern façade
(facing the courtyard of the chambers) is decorated more modestly. The
arched gallery is decorated with patterned tiles.
Currently, the premises of the chambers house a
museum of applied art and life of Russia of the 17th century. In
addition to the exhibits included in the museum's exposition,
elements of the original decoration have been preserved in the
chambers and the church. Fragments of 17th-century wall paintings in
drums have been preserved in the church, but the iconostasis (also
of the 17th century) is not original (it was transferred from the
Ascension Monastery). In the Cross (Mirovarenny) Chamber, in their
place there is a marble furnace for peace with a carved gilded
canopy of the 19th century and a two-hundred-kilogram silver cad for
peace made by order of Catherine II.
Museum exposition
The
exposition of the museum presents art products, authentic cult and
household items - personal belongings of the patriarchs and members
of the royal family, sewing patterns, books, icons, dishes, jewelry,
watches. Products are made by both Russian and foreign craftsmen
(German, Turkish, etc.).
Among the most notable exhibits
(besides the aforementioned ovens for chrismation, the cadi for
peace, the iconostasis) are an alabaster, a golden censer
(contribution of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich), a funny goblet in the
form of a crowned person, a hanging shroud depicting Metropolitan
Jonah, a clock of Patriarch Filaret, a jade bowl ( a gift to Tsar
Mikhail Fedorovich), a gilded silver goblet from Nuremberg, a richly
decorated Gospel, an equestrian portrait of Tsar Alexei
Mikhailovich, icons of St. Andrew the First-Called and Theodore
Stratilat.
The exhibits are grouped by subject.
Samples of
traditional utensils are exhibited in the Cross Chamber - dishes,
feet, glasses, cups, brothers, embassy gifts, patriarchs' clothes,
liturgical utensils, jewelry, watches.
Artistic sewing is
presented in the Refectory.
In the church of the Cathedral of the
Twelve Apostles there is an exposition of icons.
In the Prikazny
chambers, the interior of the living quarters of the 17th century of
a rich Russian house is presented - a tiled stove, furniture
(chests, a table, cabinets); in the second room of the chambers, the
interior of an office with books, chess, a globe, writing utensils
is reproduced.